Aether
by Ansaraeh
Summary: Betrayed by her own parents, Taylor needs to find her own path with a world where she can only be an outsider. My version of Wolverine and the X-men with my own character.
1. Hindsight part 1

_I do not own __Wolverine and the X-men__. If I did, I would be doing this, now would I?_

**Chapter 1: Hindsight part 1**

Sometimes you just wake up and know it's going to be one of those days. Maybe you slept through your alarm clock or forgot an important essay for one of your classes. For me it all started when a bunch of MRDs broke down my door and pointed their gun in my face. At five freaking am.

Now, I don't know about you, but when I get woken up before my due time, I am not the nicest creature in the world. In fact I tend to get a downright pissy. And when it comes to my powers, it is not the best idea to make me mad because then I tend to lose control. So I don't think it's entirely my fault when the MRDs filed into my bedroom a tornado force wind knocked them all out the window. What? When a girl controls the elements, things like that tend to happen.

"Ah crap," I mumbled as I heard the screams and bellows of the MRD soldiers from my new refurbished window. More soldiers were going to be sent up to get me no doubt, better get dressed at the very least. Then start running. Yeah, that sounded like a good plan.

With a heavy moan I dragged myself out from under my warm blankets and pulled on the first clothes I grabbed. A pair of holey jeans, a black T-shirt with the words 'Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups' scrawled in white on the front, and my combat boots were all I had time to pull on before the next round of soldiers thundered up the stairs.

Quickly I walked over to the hole in my wall and considered my options. I could take out the men coming up the stairs, or I could go out the window. Seeing the soldiers stepping into my room I quickly turned and jumped out the window, using my powers over air to soften my landing.

On the ground, soldiers were already racing over to apprehend me, over their shoulders I could see the horrified gazes of my parents as they looked at their daughter, the mutant. My stomach twisted painfully and I mentally kicked myself for revealing my secret to them. I knew it had been a mistake as soon as I had told them. Something in their eyes just told me that they just couldn't accept me. Their betrayal left a bitter taste in my mouth, but I had more important things to worry about now.

I held my hands out in front of me, parallel to the earth and raised them slowly. In a neat little semi circle around me the ground rose up with my hands creating a nice little barrier, then with a swift push it rocketed towards the approaching soldiers and knocked them off their feet. I took the momentary distraction to my advantage and started running. When the next batch of soldiers came towards me, I waved my hands in a graceful arc and fire leapt out of them and forced them back.

A few soldiers, wising up to my tactics didn't approach, but shot their guns at me. I dodged the ones I could, rolling out of the way, and created a shield from the ground to protect me from the rest. Since I was concentrating on the soldiers in front of me, I didn't notice the flying net until it was too late.

It wrapped around me like a spider web, making me lose my balance and fall to the ground. I snarled and struggled with the rope until a gush of gas to my face made my vision start to swim.

"Damn it all!" I growled as I lost consciousness. They had caught me after all.

~ * ~

When I woke up, I nearly blinded myself when I looked up into a very bright, long, florescent light bulb. I swore loudly and squeezed my eyes shut while I wiped away the tears leaking out of the corner of my eyes. Finally, when I had control of myself again, I studied my surroundings and scowled at what I found.

I was in a metal cell, no openings save for the door that was covered with glowing lasers. I didn't bother trying to see what would happen if I touched it, the results would be painful. The only piece of furniture, if you could call it that, were the hard benches on either side, they had placed me on one of them while I was unconscious. That was decent of them I suppose.

Slowly I rose to my feet and got as close to the lasers as I dared. Carefully I peeked out into the hall, but there wasn't very much to see. I was in the holding block, and there were lots of cells lining both sides of the corridor. I couldn't see any of the occupants, but I knew which ones were occupied and which weren't. The ones with mutants obviously had the force fields up while the empty ones didn't.

Interestingly enough, the cell across from mine didn't hold a single mutant, but a small family. A dark skinned man with spectacles and a beard, a woman with long red hair and a little girl who clutched a worn looking teddy bear to her chest. She was staring at me with big eyes and I grinned sheepishly, remembering my curse words earlier.

"Hey kid. How's it going over on that side of the hall?"

Her lips twitched and her parents looked at me with some disapproval. I didn't blame them. I hadn't exactly given them a good first impression, and I looked like some sort of punk with my ripped clothes, and my multicoloured hair. It wasn't my fault I looked that way, my hard always been black at the roots but tipped with silver at the ends; as though I had dunked them in paint. It was a part of my mutation, but id did give me a sort of gothic look. So I did my best to ignore them and kept my purple eyes on the girl. I was good with kids; I had been really close to my little brother before…well before my parents turned me in.

She smiled tentatively and hugged her teddy bear even closer. "Probably the same as over there," she said quietly.

I laughed. "Probably," I agreed. "So what are you in for?"

Her father opened his mouth as if to speak, but the girl spoke before he hand a chance. "We let a mutant stay at our house because he saved my life and they arrested us for it."

I blinked in surprised. "You're not mutants?"

"Is that a problem?" the father demanded, a scowl on his face. I immediately raised my hands in surrender.

"Not at all, I'm just surprised. I didn't think I'd find any non-mutants down here." I frowned and tried to figure why the family would have been arrested. They wouldn't have been if they cooperated with the MRD… "You guys wouldn't tell them anything about the mutant you sheltered, did you?"

The girl shook her head proudly. "No, and we won't either."

I nodded in approval. "Good for you kid."

"What did you do to get in here?"

"Erica!" the mother exclaimed. "That's extremely rude."

Laughing, I shook my head. "Nah, it's ok. I asked first didn't I? It's only fair she asks the same question," I told the mom, then looked at the kid. "My parents don't like mutants at all," I said with a grimace. "When I told them what I was…well…they turned me in."

Erica's eyes widened. "Your parents did this to you?"

Uh oh, I hope I didn't cause any trouble between her and her folks. "Yeah."

Her big brown eyes started to fill with tears and I quickly opened my mouth to reassure her, but a hissing sound from down the hall stopped me. I craned my neck awkwardly, trying to see was what going on, and saw three soldiers marching down the hall. Two regular MRD soldiers a big, bald guy between them who I imagined was someone higher up on the hierarchy system. They stopped in front of the family's cell and the guy in the middle started talking.

"Tell me about the mutant."

Erica and her father stood up, clutching each other's hand. "We don't know what you're talking about," Erica said coldly.

"His name is Wolverine, and he's very dangerous."

"He is not," she spat.

The big guy stepped towards them menacingly, and though I couldn't see his face, I imagine it was scrunched up in an ugly scowl.

"Yes he is," he snarled. Erica flinched into her father's leg and I snapped. The man was going too far, growling at little kids like that.

"Hey, big and ugly," I called. He whirled around to stare at me incredulously. His scars making my words quite ironic. "Yeah you. Why don't you pick on someone who can actually fight back? Or are you too chicken to do anything other than frighten little girls?"

With a snarl he turned to me and stomped over to my cell. "I'd watch yourself if I were you, mutie."

I smirked. "Why would I, when watching your face turn purple is so much more amusing?"

He gritted his teeth, but ignored my comment. "Ok, girl, I'm going to give you the deal we give to every mutant here. Give us the name of any mutants you know, and we'll—"

"You'll what?" I asked scathingly. "Set me free? I don't think so. Not hurt or kill me? I'm not afraid of you. You won't get any names out of me."

He grinned devilishly and I couldn't stop a shiver from running down my spine. "We'll see about that." He nodded to the guards who turned off the lasers and grabbed my hands. I struggled a bit, but I wasn't anywhere near strong enough to get out of their grasp and without any further ado, they dragged me out of my cell and down the hall.

They took me to another room not far away and placed me in a metal chair in the center. As soon as I sat down, large metal restraints clamped down on my arms, waist and chest and the bald guy laughed as I struggled.

"This is your last chance, mutie. Why don't you make this easier on yourself and tell us now?"

"Bite me," I snarled. He just shrugged and pressed a button on a tiny little remote. Metal wrapped around my head, covering my eyes and keeping my head in place. There was a moment where I just struggled against the cold metal, then excruciating pain wracked my body. There wasn't even a build up in strength, just suddenly it was there and I screamed with pain and surprise.

I writhed in the chair, trying not to make a sound and to stop moving, but I didn't have control over my body any more. It writhed and whimpered pathetically, occasional screams bursting out and tearing at my vocal chords.

"It hurts doesn't it?" His voice seemed like it was coming from miles away, but its mocking tone injured me in ways that the pain couldn't. Clever of them, combining emotional and physical pain in one horrible, breaking experience.

"So pathetic, weak. How does it feel to be the scum of the earth? Unloved, unwanted? Your own family gave you up. You are truly alone now."

"Shut up!" I managed to spit out through my clenched teeth. I whimpered again and the pain spiked and I knew that Baldy was adjusting the pain level on the machine.

"Taylor Sarah Adams. 5'4". 17. Violet eyes. Black hair tipped with white." He snorted. "Your parents should have realized you were a mutant right from the start. An honours student. Champion soccer player and martial artist. Controls and manipulates fire, earth, wind and air. We know all about you, Taylor. We also know about that gang of mutants you hung out with on the weekends. Now tell me where to find them and I'll let you go."

The pain climaxed and I screamed as tears leaked out from behind the metal over my eyes. My back arched against my restraints, but nothing I did relieved the pain. "Fuck you!" I screamed.

"We'll find them anyways, Taylor. And when we do we'll make sure that they suffer more because you made things that much more difficult for us. Is that what you want?"

"No," I moaned pathetically. "Go 'way!"

Abruptly the pain vanished and I sagged wearily against the chair, sweat and tears running down my face. My clothes felt vastly more uncomfortable now that they were sticking to my body, and phantom pain still made my muscles shudder. Slowly the metal strips over my eyes moved and I blinked to clear my vision. Baldy leaned closer, invading my personal space and I couldn't help but flinch away. His nasty breath contaminated my air and I could see a vein pulsing in his forehead.

"Tell me now, or you'll regret it."

"No," I whispered defiantly between my gasps for air.

He simply straightened and nodded to one of the soldiers. "Take her to Stone. Give him this." He handed the man a piece of paper and the soldier saluted briskly before turning to me. Quickly he released me from my bonds and roughly pulled me to my feet. My muscles still weren't working right through, my legs were like jello and I nearly fell on my face until the soldier caught me and then proceeded to drag me away.

A few seconds later I was being dragged into another room that looked like some freakish modern day med lab. A metal slab was position in the middle of the room with tables and cupboards full of knives and other scary looking devices placed around the room. In a swivel chair by a desk a middle aged man reclined, reading a magazine. He looked up expectantly when we entered and grinned when he saw me.

"Oh good," he purred. "Finally, another one. I was getting bored here on my lonesome."

"She's all yours Stone. This is from General Moss." The soldier passed him the piece of paper and shoved me towards the slab before exiting the room. I started shaking again, but I glared at Stone anyways.

He quickly read the note then tossed it in the garbage and turned to me. "Well, my dear, let me introduce myself. I am Captain Stone, and I am in charge of gaining information when that machine fails to do so."

"And how often does that happen?"

He shook his head. "Not often at all, I'm afraid. I haven't had someone to play with for almost a month now." I shivered at the word 'play' but he didn't seem to notice. "And don't bother trying to use your powers, my own won't allow you to do that."

I gaped at him. "You're a mutant?"

"Yes."

"And you're working with them! Hurting others of your kind! How could you?"

"Quite easily actually," he said coldly, clinically. "The MRD leaves me alone, I get rich and they get information. It's a win-win situation if you ask me."

"You're a monster," I hissed.

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Perhaps. Now, if you would please lay down on the table. We might as well get started."

"Make me!"

His dark eyes glittered. "Very well."

Before I could react he was by my side and lifting me onto the table. I screamed and lashed out at him, but he was built like a boulder and didn't even flinch as I pounded my fists against his flesh. Soon he had me strapped down to the table with leather restraints so I couldn't move no matter how hard I squirmed.

"Now, I'm going to give you one last chance to tell me what Moss wants to know. If you talk now I will not lay a finger one you and you may go back to your cell. So what is your choice?"

"Go to hell!"

He grinned manically. "I thought that's what you'd say." He turned his back to me and started fiddling with the tools. "Now, that machine that you just experienced put you through some of the worst pain you'll ever imagine and coupled with some emotional abuse it usually gets some good results," he said grudgingly. "But is has a major fault. For one, it only causes pain for as long as you're in it. "Older methods of torture, like branding and cutting makes a lasting pain plus disfigures the victim. And people are so vain by nature, that they usually do anything to stop both from happening. So, little one, that's what we're going to try." He turned around, holding a red-hot brand shaped like and 'M' in one hand. Quickly before I could do anything he plunged it onto my upper arm near the shoulder.

I screamed and the hot iron branded my skin, the smell of burning flesh reaching my nostrils and making me want o be sick. Tears streamed from my eyes as my shoulder burned with pain and continued to throb unbearably as Stone backed away with a sickly grin.

"On a scale of one to ten, how did that make you feel?" he asked as he reheated the brand.

"Shut up," I growled.

"I thought so." He smirked and moved forward and quickly branded my other arm in the same position. I screamed loudly again when it met my skin and my stomach roiled, wanting to rid my body of food I didn't have.

"Please stop," I whispered through my tears.

"Giving up already? Such a shame. But go ahead girl. Tell me what Moss wishes to know and I'll stop. So what is it?"

"I won't tell you anything!"

He shrugged. "Very well then." He put down the brand and picked up a wicked look knife. His wrist flicked towards me and I instinctively flinched away, but the edge still got my face and left a burning trail from forehead to cheekbone, just barely missing my eye. Before I could recover I heard it swish through the air again and then my palms burned with pain too.

I cried pathetically as the blood poured out of my wounds, unaware of anything save for the crippling pain. Part of me wanted to blurt out all the information I had to make the pain go away. Another part, the more stubborn part refused to give them what I wanted. So I compromised. I screamed out curses at Stone, hoping to keep my mouth suitably occupied so I wouldn't say something stupid and released my anger at him too. Still with each curse word, it seemed to make Stone more anger and he lashed out at me, only this time with a whip.

My screams and the cracks of the whip must have been loud enough to wake the dead, yet no one came in. After a while my voice grew hoarse and I stopped yelling, and Stone paused in his lashing. I kept my eyes squeezed shut, and shuddered on the table, but I could hear Stone panting from exertion and grinding his teeth in anger.

Before either of us could say anything, the door opened with a hiss and a loud, guttural snarl ripped through the air quickly followed by the sounds of a scuffle. Bewildered I cracked my eyes open, blinking away sweat, tears and blood to find a short man dressed in a strange suit slamming Stone into a wall. I could only stare in shock as Stone slumped to the ground unconscious and the man turned to me, metal claws sinking back into his hands.

We stared at each other for a moment before he slowly approached with his hands raised towards me, showing he wasn't going to hurt me. Still, I flinched away from him with a whimper, an instinctive reaction that I didn't ask for and felt disgusted for doing. How pathetic was I, to be reduced to such a sorry creature.

"It's ok kid, I'm here to help," the man said in a low, gravelly voice. He moved closer, his hands moving towards me.

"Don't touch me!" I screamed, struggling against my bonds to move farther away from him. The man stopped moving immediately.

"I'm trying to help you, kid. Please. I'm just going to undo those straps and help you to safety. I promise I won't hurt you. Just let me help you." Slowly his hands moved to the leather straps, and though I trembled I forced myself not to move. I had to be rational, just because he was a guy didn't mean he was going to hurt me. Focus Taylor.

"Can you walk?" the man asked when he was done undoing the straps me. Instead of answering I sat up unsteadily and jumped to the ground, collapsing immediately. I tried to climb to my feet, but my muscles were like mush and I couldn't do little besides sit up so the man stepped forward and before I could protest scooped me up in his arms. His skin burned against mine and I squirmed frantically, trying to get free.

"Let me go! Don't touch me!" The man didn't even grunt as I pounded my fists against his chest, he kept running through the halls and his secure grip around me didn't shift.

"I'm trying to help you kid, be patient."

After a short while the man stopped and I could hear a lot of voices. I curled up in a ball, trying to protect myself from the bright lights and the stares I could feel pointed in my direction.

"Oh my stars and garters," a voice whispered not too far away. "What did they do to her?"

"Can you carry her Hank? I've gotta clear the way."

"Of course, hand her over."

I whimpered pathetically as I was moved around, and tried to make myself even smaller as my wounds burned. All I wanted was for the pain to end, but it just got worse as whoever was holding me started to run, jostling me around. I moaned and flinched, certain I was going to explode form the pain, until I was placed gently on something cold, hard and smooth that began to lift.

I could hear gun fire and a loud engine, some people talking, but it all blended together. More tears streamed down my cheeks and a large, strong hand brushed against my forehead. I wanted to flinch away, but I didn't have the strength.

"Hey mate, she don't look too good," a male voice with a strong Australian accent said somewhere above my head. There was some shuffling around until the deep, gravelly voice of my rescuer spoke.

"Hey kid, can you hear me? Kid?" His voice grew steadily fainter and darkness began taking over. I welcomed it gratefully as slowly the pain began to fade away and I knew no more.

~ * ~

I slowly came to, I had a much nicer wake up call that the day before. A rumbling hum by my side was rather comforting and slowly I cracked my eyes opening, careful to look away from the lights overhead.

Slowly and painfully I turned my head and blinked at what I saw. A Large, fuzzy, blue man wearing brown pants, a green T-shirt and a lab coat was scrawling on a clipboard. A pair of delicate looking spectacles rested on his nose, making his bestial appearance rather comical and not at all scary.

"Who are you?" I asked, my throat burning with the effort and sounding more like a croak than anything else. It sounded pretty frightening to me, but the blue man jumped a foot in the air then looked down at me in surprise.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry I didn't realize you were awake." He adjusted his glasses so they perched on top of his head. "My name is Dr. Henry McCoy, you may call me Hank or Beast if you prefer. And your name my dear?"

"Taylor," I said shortly. I didn't want to seem rude, but I didn't trust him yet. "Where am I?"

"At X-men headquarters." He paused for a moment and smiled sheepishly, his big fangs flashing accidentally. "Well, at what soon will be the X-men headquarters anyways."

"Who're the X-men?"

"A group of mutants fighting for mutant rights. Our ultimate goal is to have humans and mutants living together peacefully, and we try to do that by not only saving mutant lives but helping the humans as well."

"Oh," I said softly, not quite understanding but willing to let it go. I studied Hank for a moment, noticing how his eyes kept staying to my forehead and sighed heavily. "So how bad am I?" I asked, brining my legs up to my chest and resting my chin on my knees.

Hank sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, and I quickly shifted back, to put as much distance between us as possible. Not because I feared the way he looked, I quickly realized, but because I feared what he might do to me. Stone had left a deeper psychological scar than I thought.

"Physically, you are doing remarkably well," Hank said, politely ignoring my movements. "I cleaned and bandaged all your wounds and they seem to be healing nicely. The cuts on your palms and face will scar, likely permanently, but the lashes from the whip will likely fade in time. It's a miracle you weren't blinded. The scars from the brands are also your for life, but they can be easily concealed as long as you wear something for than a tank top. Psychologically however, I'm a bit more concerned. Judging from the way you acted when we first rescued you and by your reaction just a few seconds ago, you have aphephobia; a fear of being touched. Considering your situation, I'm not surprised it developed, and with time and some therapy it could fade completely. It also might be a specific fear of men touching you, or strangers, but I'm sure if we tried you can overcome it."

I looked away from his kind eyes, ashamed at my weakness. I had been there for a couple hours tops and look at me. Pathetic.

"You're welcome to stay here as long as you wish, Taylor," Hank continued softly. "You may even join the X-men if you wish." He hesitated for a moment then spoke again. "Do you have anyone you wish for me to contact? Your parents perhaps?"

I flinched at the word 'parents' and quickly shook my head. "No."

"Very well. I'll be in the next room over if you need me. Logan, the man who rescued you, will be wandering around as well so do not be alarmed if you see him."

I nodded. "Ok."

Hank stood up, the bed groaning in relief, and walked to the door. "Try to get some rest, it's the best medicine in these situations."

"Ok, thank you."

He grinned at me, flashing his fangs. "You're welcome my dear." Quietly he flicked off the light and slipped out of the room.

I lay back down on the bed, curled into a tiny ball and clutching the blankets around me. I hadn't though I would be able to sleep in that strange room, surrounded by strangers especially since I just woke up a few minutes ago, but my eyelids started drooping almost immediately. Soon I was asleep.


	2. Hindsight part 2

_I do not own Wolverine and the X-men or any associated characters._

**Chapter 2: Hindsight part 2**

When I woke up again, it was dark. No that it was any indication about what time it was, there were no windows in the room where I was sleeping and the lights were off. Slowly and painfully I slipped out from the blankets and for the first time noticed what I was wearing. An exceedingly large pair of sweat pants and wife-beater engulfed my slight form and my feet were bare. For a moment I wondered who had changed me out of my clothes and then decided not to worry about it. For one I didn't really want to know and for another I was grateful that they did. I wouldn't have wanted to sleep in the sweat and blood encrusted clothes I had been wearing.

Quietly I padded towards the door, having an overwhelming urge to use the washroom. After a brief poking around I found a washroom to relieve myself and clean up a bit. Once I had finished I looked at myself in the mirror, critically eyeing the new changes.

My hair and eyes looked the same as always. Though my hair was messy and slightly greasy looking and my eyes tired. My face and hands were still bandaged and sore, but they were feeling kind of itchy which meant they were healing. The brands on my shoulders ached and hidden under bandages as well. Honestly I wasn't all that eager to look at them either. When I lifted my shirt to look at the lashings, I winced and the mess. My skin was a mottle black, blue and yellow scattered with red welts. They were fading and only a few bandages covered the worst of it. All in all I was a bit of a mess, but I was healing and that was the important thing.

With a heavy sigh I left the washroom and started wandering around. The metal hallways were rather creepy looking, I decided as I meandered, and cold. Still, it was better than nothing and Hank at least had been kind to me when I first woke up. Hopefully the other man, Logan, would be too.

I finally came to a room where the smell of food was rather concentrated and tentatively I poked my head in. Hank was sitting at a table with a plate of untouched pancakes in front of him and a newspaper in his hands. A small frown marred his face as he read, and he absentmindedly sipped at a mug of coffee that was dwarfed by his large hand. Another man, Logan I assumed, was leaning on the counter near the toaster, a plate nearby and waiting. He also nursed a cup of coffee and as soon as I peeked in his head moved up and he looked right at me.

"Morning, kid," he greeted me with a small smile. "How're you feelin'?"

Slowly I moved into the room, feeling ridiculous in my clothes and wrapped my arms around myself. "Sore," I admitted softly. "But better. Thanks."

"Ah, Taylor," Hank said with a large smile. "I'm glad to hear that. This is Logan, by the way, I don't think you were formerly introduced?" I shook my head in response and gave Logan a small nod that he returned. Hank obviously considered that to be a perfectly fine way to greet someone and immediately plunged on. "Wonderful. Would you like some breakfast? I'm wiling to share my pancakes if you wish."

I shook my head. "No, that's fine. I'll just make myself some toast." Quickly I wandered over where Logan was and waited patiently for the toaster to be free. There was a long moment of awkward silence, and I beginning to feel more and more uncomfortable as each moment passed, but then Hank broke the silence.

"Taylor, later this afternoon Logan and I are going to go see one of our old friends to see if she wishes to join us. While we're out we can drop you off at a mall so you can get yourself some new clothes if you would like."

"I don't have any money," I admitted quietly, playing with the hem of my shirt.

Hank shook his head. "We have some you can use." When I opened my mouth to protest he quickly jumped in. "And if you feel like you must, you can repay us later. It's is not necessary though, we are trying to help you."

I bit my lip and considered it. I really didn't want to use their money, they had done so much for me already, but I couldn't think of anything else unless… "Um, if you could drop me off at my old house I could pick up my things. It would be a lot easier than way."

Hank and Logan exchanged a glanced and they nodded. "Very well, if that is what you wish. While you're there you may pick up anything you wish to keep, computers, cds, that sort of thing."

"Ok."

With that plan in place I started making my breakfast, feeling a little more secure in my place with these men. If they wanted to me pick up my valuables as well, obviously they expected me to be here a while, and I was strangely ok with that. In fact I was happy. Slowly they were gaining my trust.

A few hours later I had taken a shower and changed into another pair of borrowed clothes that were just as big and Hank had found me some shoes to wear until we reached my house. Once we were ready, we all piled into the MRD helicopter and headed off to my house. The entire way there I was jittery and nervous but slowly it was replaced by a simmering rage. This was my family, the ones who handed me over to the MRD where I was tortured for information. No, they weren't my family any more.

Hank landed the helicopter in a field a little ways from my house and after a brief discussion it was decided that Hank would stay to watch the helicopter and Logan and I would gather my things. Logan and I didn't say a word as we walked to my house, but the silence wasn't uncomfortable, even though I was careful to keep a good amount of space between us. It was a companionable silence and somehow I knew that if everything went wrong, Logan would help me out of it.

Finally we reached my house and I paused on the sidewalk, taking it in. The lawn was a mess from my fight with the MRD and the white paint was scorched a bit. The hole I had made was covered with plastic that moved in the wind and I felt a surge of satisfaction realizing how much trouble I had caused my parents that night. Serves them right. The car was in the drive though, indicating they were home and slowly I walked up to the door, Logan on my heels.

I knocked firmly on the wooden door and stared impassively at it while I heard footsteps approaching and my dad pulled open the door. We stared at each other for a mull minute before he finally spoke.

"Taylor? What are you doing here? I thought—"

"That I was gone for good?" I asked frostily. "Not quite. But don't worry, I'm just here for my stuff." Roughly I pushed past him and walked confidently into the house even though on the inside I was quaking with nerves or rage I wasn't certain.

"Jack? Who is it? Oh," my mother said, walking around the corner, wiping her hands on a tea towel. "Taylor?" she asked tentatively.

"Don't worry Mom, I'll be out of your hair soon." I turned to Logan who was leaning against the doorframe, watching the three of us carefully. "My room's upstairs, can you help me pack?"

"Sure thing, kid," he said and together we walked up the stairs, my parents following nervously.

"Honey, can we talk?" my mother asked once we reached my room. My parents stayed by the door while Logan and I shoved my things into whatever bags I could fine. Duffle bags, a couple suitcases, backpacks. I didn't bother being neat about it, I just dumped the contents of my drawers in, though I was sure to do my undergarments myself rather than have Logan stumble upon them.

"Speak, I'm listening."

"We're concerned. The MRD called us last night, informing us you had runaway with some…" she glanced at Logan nervously and quickly changed what she was going to say. "Unsavory characters."

"Did they?" I mused as I stuffed my laptop in its special carrying case.

"Yes, perhaps its best you stay home."

I snorted. "What? So you can just call the MRD again? I don't think so."

"We just want what's best for you."

I froze and slowly turned to them, anger making my hands shake and the wind tore at the plastic furiously. "What's best for me?" I repeated. "You want what's best for me?" I laughed coldly. "You have no idea what's best for me. And you know what? You lost the right to order me around the moment you called the MRD. You aren't my parents anymore, you're just the people that gave birth to me."

My mother's eyes filled with tears, but my dad's eyes flashed with anger. "Don't you dare speak to us that way, young lady," he snapped. "You must give us all the respect we deserve."

"That's exactly what I did. I gave you all due respect."

"That's it!" My father stomped forward and grabbed my wrist, yanking me towards the door and away from Logan. My skin burned where he touched me and I tried to pull away from him.

"Don't touch me!" I screeched, clawing at his hand.

"Stop that racket, Taylor, I'm your father and I know what's best for you."

"Don't touch me!" I repeated, bordering on panic. Suddenly Logan was there, gripping my father's wrist so tightly I could hear something crunching. My father bellowed in pain and let go of me, allowing me to stumble backwards and cower behind Logan.

"She said, don't touch her," Logan growled menacingly to my parents who paled and cringed away from the angry man. Logan then turned to me, approaching me but not trying to touch. "You ok, kid?"

"Yeah," I whispered. "Can we go?"

He nodded. "Sure kid, let's go."

Quickly we gathered up my things, Logan taking the three bags of my clothes and I had two bags of valuables that I didn't want to leave behind. Without saying a word we walked down the stairs and to the door, I paused on the threshold and looked back at my ashen parents.

"Tell Nick I said bye," I said quietly, then hurriedly walked out and slammed the door behind me.

Once again Logan and I didn't say anything on the way back to the helicopter. Our faces must have reflected our visit and Hank didn't ask any questions as we piled in. Hank and Logan started talking about where to find someone called Rogue and I took the opportunity to change into something that actually fit. I retreated to the back, and shuffled through it all until I found a decent pair of jeans, a baggy gym T-shirt that would hide the bandages on my midsection and shoulders, and a pair of sneakers.

Once I was decent I returned to the front and saw we were just beginning to land. I looked around the area carefully, mostly full of empty warehouses, and my eyebrows shot up. "Rogue will be here?"

"Senator Kelly is giving a speech on mutants in this vicinity right now," Hank explained. "We think that Rogue will be there, listening." With the ease of practice he landed the helicopter and turned if off. We all climbed out and looked around, specifically at the large crown of people surrounding the senator. Logan pulled a pair of huge binoculars and peered through them, trying to find her.

"What does she look like?" I asked, scanning the crowd with my own pair of binoculars that they had given me.

"Light brown hair and white bangs. Usually keeps it up in a ponytail. Green eyes," Logan grunted. "She'll be keeping her skin covered up too, so likely wearing a jacket of some sort."

Suddenly Kelly whipped a black tarp off a purple, mechanical spider and I whistled under my breath. "What is that thing?"

"A sentinel prowler," Logan growled. "A mutant hunter. If Rogue's there it'll likely go after her. They're programmed to chase mutants and kill them." As Logan predicted, the sentinel seemed to pick out a retreating figure in the crown and stepped off the podium to chase it.

"Is that her?"

"Yep. Let's go."

Following along the rooftops we chased the sentinel and girl. Jumping from roof to roof I manipulated the air to give me a bit of a boost, Logan and Hank didn't need it. Finally we managed to catch up to the pair, only the girl wasn't alone anymore. A man with large white wings scooped Rogue up into his arms and soared into the sky. I whistled appreciatively, admiring the sight of an angel—as close to one as I'm ever going to get anyways—but then the sentinel clipped one of his wings with his gun the pair began to fall.

"I got it!" I said, gesturing up with my hands. The wind followed my movements, and rushed upwards, slowing their decent so they landed lightly on their feet, but the sentinel was still coming. Logan then launched himself into the air and landed firmly on its back. I blinked at his savage rage as he sliced into the machine's back, then shrugged and followed Hank who had jumped to the ground and was talking with the other two mutants.

"Are you two alright?"

"Great," the blond man replied. "Now that I see the X-men are back together."

"Oh," Hank said nervously. "Well…"

"We're not," Rogue said harshly.

I looked at her with raised eyebrows, not entirely impressed with her attitude. "Some of us are," I said coldly.

"Oh, are you with us officially now?" Hank asked happily.

"If that's ok," I said with a sheepish grin, just realizing I had just assumed I was part of them.

"Of course, the more the merrier!" He turned to the winged man. "So the X-men currently consists of myself, Logan, and the lovely Miss Taylor," he said with a dramatic gesture in my direction.

"And a stolen MRD helicopter," I said with a smirk.

"My name is Warren Worthington III, or Angel, I suppose you can guess why." He stuck out his hand and I stiffly took it, not wishing to appear rude.

"Nice you meet you. So do you all have these odd codenames?"

Hank nodded. "Yes while we're on missions we use them so we don't give our identities away." He glanced quickly at Rogue. "Though some of us prefer to use them full time."

"Guess I'll have to come up with one then," I mused.

Suddenly there was a loud explosion and we all turned to see the sentinel smoking and falling to the ground as Logan lithely jumped off. He looked back at us then slowly wandered over. Rogue pulled up the hood of her green jacket and walked away. Logan walked past us towards her with a small acknowledgement to Warren that was returned and I watched the two mutants walked away down the alley.

"So," Hank said to keep the conversation going. "What about you? Isn't it time you came back?"

Warren sighed. "Sorry, I can't."

"But I thought your father found out you were a mutant."

"He did. Still hates mutants though. And that makes me the family's dark little secret," Warren said bitterly as he started to walk away.

"So why stick around?" I asked. "Sees to me you'd be a lot happier somewhere else."

"Because right now I help a lot of mutants with the family money. If I join any mutant group, he'd cut me off."

Hank nodded. "I understand."

The sound of helicopters made us look up. MRDs were already coming in to investigate and find their wayward sentinel. Warren sighed and walked a few more steps.

"MRDs, that's my exit cue." He turned back to us and shook hanks hand. "Hey Hank, good luck. The world needs the X-men." He then turned to me with a charming smile and shook my hand again. "It was nice to meet you Taylor. And good luck with the code name."

"Nice to meet you too, and thanks," I said, a bit stiffly at his close proximity, but still politely. He stepped back and launched into the air, Hank's and my eyes following him with admiration as he soared into the sky.

"He really does look like an angel," I mused.

Hank chuckled. "Indeed he does. By the way, I'm very impressed with how you handed yourself. You acted quickly when saving Angel and Rogue, and you didn't let your phobia get in the way of pleasantries. Well done."

I shrugged and scuffed the ground with my sneakers. "It was a lot harder than it looked," I admitted.

"Don't worry," Hank said kindly. "It can only get better with time." We walked down the alley where Logan and Rogue and walked, reaching Logan just as Rogue disappeared around the corner.

"She just needs a little time," Hank said comfortingly.

"Yeah, maybe," Logan said not sounding completely convinced.

"What's her deal anyways?" I asked.

Hank sighed and we started walking towards the helicopter. "It's a long story, but essentially Rogue has always been the odd one out, so to speak. Her powers make it impossible to touch someone without hurting them, and she ran away when her powers first emerged. As such, she bonded with Logan because of their similar personalities but she always felt like he's abandoned her whenever he went over to confront his past."

"So she's got abandonment issues," I summed up. "Doesn't trust Logan anymore."

"I can hear you, you know," Logan growled.

"Sorry," I said automatically, not really meaning it and by the look he sent my way, Logan knew it too.

"She's right though," Logan continued. "No one's going to come back if I'm in charge."

"Seems to me you just have to prove you can be there and you can do it," I said with a shrug.

"I need a team to lead first."

"You've got us."

Logan turned and looked at me then Hank. "So you with us officially then?"

"Yep."

He nodded slowly. "It's a start. Thanks kid," he said over his shoulder.

"Not a problem," I murmured as we entered the building where the helicopter was parked. Quickly we raced up to the roof, piled in and headed for home.

Once there, Hank went back to the computer to start finding other members of the X-men and I got my things settled in my room. I wasn't sure what Logan did, but I didn't see him for a couple more hours, and even then it was just a passing by as he left. Noticing his swift pace I ambled over to the computer lab where Hank was working and leaned against the wall.

"So where's Logan going?"

"He's going to meet with Scott Summers or Cyclops," Hank said absentmindedly as he tapped away on the keyboard. "Hopefully he'll bring him back too."

"And you're looking for the other X-men, huh?"

"Yes indeed."

I nodded. "Cool. I suppose I'll go make myself useful by making supper. What would you like to eat?"

"Anything you feel like cooking. Neither Logan nor myself are picky eaters."

I shrugged. "Ok then. See ya later Hank." He didn't respond as I left, but I wasn't offended. He was occupied with something more important.

In the kitchen, or what passed as a kitchen, I perused the cupboards before deciding we desperately needed groceries. There wasn't enough of anything to make a proper meal, let alone for two large men and a teenage girl with a big appetite. However, I had a knack for making something out of nothing, so I managed to come up with something decent.

Three assorted noodles—penne, spaghetti and rotini—combined made enough pasta for the three of us, and I made a chili to go on top. I tossed kidney beans, tomato paste, tomato sauce, cooked hamburger, a bit of onion, garlic, diced tomatoes and a lot of chili powder into a large pot, mixed it together and heated it up. So far so good, all we need now was a few side dishes.

I made a leafy green salad with cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers and a bottle of dressing I found in the fridge. I wasn't quite sure if they would eat it, but it was important to have a balanced meal, so I made it anyways. I also made a loaf of garlic bread as a bit extra. About an hour later everything was on the table, and I went to find Hank. I had just reached the doorway when Hank appeared, breathing in the scent of food like it was all that was keeping him alive.

"It smells delightful, Taylor. Maybe we should keep you on kitchen detail permanently."

"Ha," I snorted. "Good luck with that. Has Logan come back yet?"

As if in response to my question Logan appeared right behind Hank, his nose also working in overdrive.

"Hank's right kid. Smells good."

I rolled my eyes. "Well come in and sit down then, it's getting cold."

The three of us sat down and dug in, and other than a gentle reprimand on the benefits of having a balanced diet to Logan, we didn't say anything. Finally, when the meal was coming to an end, I asked Logan how his talk with Scott went.

"He blasted me through a brick wall," he grunted. "He's not going to be helping us anytime soon."

"And the others?" I asked Hank.

"Peter is in Russia and refuses to leave his family, not that I blame him," Hank started with a sigh. "Kitty left her folk's house a while ago when they started getting harassed and I haven't been able to locate her, and Bobby's parents won't let me speak to him."

"That sucks," I said.

"Yeah, it does," Logan agreed.

"And it just keeps on getting worse," a voice piped up from the doorway. We all turned in surprise to see Warren walking through the door.

"Warren!" I exclaimed in surprise. "Do you want some food? I think there's some left," I offered.

He eyed the food and shrugged. "I'll have some of that garlic bread, smells like heaven."

"What do you mean it's getting worse?" Logan demanded as I passed Warren the plate of garlic bread.

"Rogue has joined the Brotherhood," he said grimly before biting into the bread. His eyebrows rose in surprise. "Very good Taylor. I might have to hire you to cook at my house."

"Too late, she's ours," Logan said quickly. "Are you sure she's joined them?"

"Positive. They broke into our house so she could siphon information from my father."

"What were they after?"

"Senator Kelly's itinerary. They now know everything my father knows. They're going to take down the senator."

There was a long pause of silence, filled only by Warren's chewing before I turned to Logan.

"So now what?"

"We have to stop them," Logan said grimly. "But first we need to talk to Bobby's parents."

I winced. "Oh joy," I muttered. With a heavy sigh I rose to my feet and started stacking the dishes.

"Put down those dishes," Hank ordered sternly.

I looked up at him in surprise. "What?"

"Put them down. You made supper, someone else does the clean up, that's the way we do it here. Besides, I want to look at your cuts, and you can't wash dishes with the cuts on your palms anyways."

"Oh." I frowned. "Then who's going to do dishes?"

"Logan and Warren would love to," Hank said smoothly. Both men opened their mouths to protest but Hank and I were already leaving the room. As I walked away I could hear their arguing over who would do what.

"Last one to the sink dries?" Warren offered.

"I've got a better idea. We each cut ourselves and whoever heals the fasted gets to wash."

"But you have an accelerated healing factor!" Warren protested.

"I know," Logan said smugly.

I shook my head at their antics and followed Hank to what he called the Med Bay. It didn't look like much, but it was well lit and clean and it held all our medical supplies, so it would have to do.

"So have you decided on a codename yet?" Hank asked to distract me as he took off the bandage to look at my eye. Goosebumps rose on my skin because of his close proximity, but I forced myself to remain still and calm, taking deep steadying breathes and concentrating on the conversation.

"Not really. I mean, there's not a lot you can say about someone who controls the four elements. Nothing good anyways."

Hank nodded. "Yes, I know what you mean. However, I did have a chance to do some research on the subject. I found that the Greeks believed that there were actually five elements, not four. Archemides reasoned that the main four; fire, earth, air and water; were earthly and corruptible, since there had been no changes or corruption in the heavens they must have been made out of a fifth element that doesn't change. This fifth element is known as the Void or Aether."

I smiled wryly and winced as Hank peeled off the tape of the bandage on my stomach. "I'm not exactly unchangeable and incorruptible."

Hank chuckled. "Perhaps not, but I think that Aether is the element that stands out amongst the rest, not exactly in the same category as the others, but part of them nonetheless. Just as you are together will us, Taylor. You belong to the X-men now, but I don't believe you will ever fit amongst the majority of us. It's not a bad thing, Taylor, just look at Logan. He's always been a bit of a lone wolf, but he is part of the family and always will be. You are more like him than you think."

I considered it for a long time. "What sets me apart, do you think?"

"You've experienced things we've never had to and never would have dreamed of. Like it or not, Taylor, your torture is going to change the way you think of people forever. You don't trust any of us, and you may not ever completely trust us." I opened my mouth to protest, but Hank continued. "Don't argue Taylor, you know I'm right. If you were falling you would look for a way to save yourself rather depend on one of us. Even now you are as tense as a rock and your eyes follow my every movement as though expecting me to attack you. And that's ok; we know it will take a long time for you to trust anyone. But that alone will make you subconsciously keep us all at arm's length. A part of us, yet not."

We were both silent as Hank finished redressing my wounds, and as he worked I realized he was right. I was going to be somewhat apart from the team, for a long time at the very least.

"I like it," I finally announced. "Aether," I repeated slowly, feeling it in my mouth. I smiled at Hank. "Thank you."

He beamed at me and gently put the last bandage in place. "It was my pleasure. Now, you're all done here. IS there anything else you need?"

I jumped lightly off the table and winced when it jarred my wounds and suddenly I remembered. "Now that I'm officially part of the X-men, do I need a uniform too?"

"Oh yes, they are very important part of the X-men. They help keep our identities under wraps as well as protection. Not to mention the first impressions!"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't suppose you have anything that fits?"

Hank eyed me up and down and slowly shook his head. "No, I don't believe anything we have will fit. Kitty's is the smallest size still intact, and you two do not have the same body shape. Do you anything of your own that might suffice at least for the time being?"

I hesitated, running through a mental list of everything I had brought with me. "Well, my friend bought me with leather outfit as a joke on my 17th birthday. Just a pair of leather pants and a leather tank top."

"Can you show it to me?"

I shrugged and walked down to my room to dig the outfit out from the back of the closet where I had stuffed it when I was unpacking. It took me a little while to find it, and once I pulled it out I laid it on the bed and eyed it, trying to decide whether I really wanted to wear it.

It wasn't hideous and it wasn't indecent. Low rise black leather pants with enough pockets to keep me satisfied. The tank top was cut low enough to show some cleavage, and it exposed an inch or so of my abdomen when I wore it. The only real problems I had with it, was that it would expose my cuts and scars for everyone to see. But it was all I had, and maybe it would help me learn to deal with my physical deformities. With a sigh I gathered up the outfit and hurried back to Hank who studied the outfit carefully. Finally he nodded.

"This will do quite fine. It's sturdy material, and it has some stretch to it so it should move with you fine. You could probably use it all the time if you wish."

I smiled. 'I'll keep that in mind. Anyways, I'm going to get some sleep. I'm sure Logan will want to leave bright and early to get Bobby. Thanks again Hank."

"Not a problem. Good night, my dear."

I picked up the clothes and wandered back to my room, making sure to keep the outfit out where I could easily find it. Then I dressed for bed, bushed my teeth and climbed into bed. I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

Just as I had predicted, Logan woke us up early to get ready. Well, at least it was early in my opinion. I suppose 8 o'clock isn't really that bad, but I wasn't exactly a morning person. Logan, unfortunately, found out the hard way.

I jumped nearly a mile high when the door to my room burst open. It crashed against the wall with a loud bag, accompanied by Logan's loud, obnoxious voice demanding to get out of bed. Of course, I didn't exactly recognize Logan's voice at first, and with my past with the MRD, it's not surprising that I immediately punched a large fireball in his direction. I rolled out of bed quickly, fists raised to strike again at my attacking and blinked in surprise and weariness as Logan yelled at me.

"Damn it, kid! It's just me!"

Abruptly all the events of the last few days caught up with me and I paled. Quickly I lowered my fists and over to where Logan was laying after hitting the deck to avoid becoming barbequed.

"Oh no! I'm sorry Logan!" I apologized quickly as I helped him off the floor. "You startled me, I didn't mean to!"

"It's fine," he grunted. "I shouldn't have woken you up like that in the first place. I'm sorry."

"It's fine," I brushed it off quickly. "So, I suppose it's time to go?" I guessed, eyeing clothes and jacket.

"Hurry up," he ordered. "Hank has breakfast waiting for you in the kitchen. We leave in half and hour."

"Ok," I agreed and watched Logan leave the room before springing into action. I grabbed all my toiletries and a pair of civilian clothes and sprinted to the bathroom where I took the fastest shower I could—I think five minutes is pretty decent—and then blow-dried my hair. Thank goodness I had thought to bring it with me when taking everything from my house. Then I dressed in the jeans and T-shirt I had grabbed; pulled back the top half my hair in one of those half ponytails, allowing my shorter bangs to frame my face; applied a bit of make up, then hurried to the kitchen.

"Ah, Taylor. How are you this morning?" Hank greeted me as I rushed in. He gestured to a plate of toast and scrambled eggs and I sat down behind it.

"Not too bad, considering," I mumbled around a full mouth.

Hank smiled. "Are you referring to the fire incident this morning?"

"Naturally." I said dryly.

"Then I wouldn't worry about it, Logan is fine and nothing was broken. Considering the amount of other incidents that have happened before, I think it was rather insignificant."

I stared at him. "I nearly barbequed Logan," I said flatly. "How can that be considered 'insignificant'?"

"Believe you me, there is nothing to worry about," Hank said reassuringly. "Now, hurry and finish your breakfast. I believe Logan wants us ready to take off in 10 minutes."

Looking at the clock I realized he was right and stuffed my face before taking off at a run again. Back in my room I pulled on my sneakers and fingerless gloves then grabbed my favorite leather jacket. I didn't expect to need it, I never got cold after I figured out I could raise my body temperature using my control of fire, but sometimes they came in useful and they looked pretty stylish too. I glanced at my alarm clock, say that I had no more time and booked it to the helicopter. Logan and Hank were already waiting for me and once I jumped in Logan looked at his watch.

"Not too bad kid, got a minute to spare."

I merely grunted in response and flung myself into one of the back seats. Logan and Hank exchanged a smile and Hank started up the helicopter.

It took a surprising amount of time to reach Bobby's parents' house. I zoned out for the majority of the trip, but I was still incredibly bored. Finally, after what seemed like eternity, Hank landed right in front of a nice, neat, little, white house with a large wrap around porch. The three of us quickly exited the helicopter and walked up to the house while Logan and Hank argued about how to go about recruiting Bobby.

"He's 18 now Hank," Logan said irritably. "He can make his own decisions now, we shouldn't even have to talk to the parents."

"But he is living with them, and this is their property. We should talk it out first, perhaps we can convince them to let him come."

Logan snorted. "The chances of that are slim to none. I say we get the kid then get out."

"Honestly Logan, I agree with Hank," I said quietly. "We should at least give the impression that we have peaceful intentions, and then resort to your plan if it doesn't work."

"That's two to one Logan," Hank said with a smile. "You're clearly out voted." Seeing Logan's scowl, Hank quickly changed the topic. "I'll do the talking. If it doesn't work we'll do it your way."

Logan huffed and firmly pounded on the door while I made myself comfortable leaning against the railing of the porch. Deciding there wasn't really much I could do, I opted to keep silent unless there was a reason not to.

A middle-aged man with a bit of a belly answered the door with a large frown on his face. When he saw Logan and Hank his eyes widened and he backed away a step. "Madeline!" he called. "You'll want to see this!"

"What is it darling?" A brown haired woman, elegantly dressed strode into view and gasped when she saw us. "You!" she exclaimed angrily. "What are you doing here?"

"We are looking for Bobby," Hank said gently. "The X-men are regrouping and we wish to see if Bobby wishes to join us again."

The woman shook her head and glared at us through her glasses. "No, he is not allowed to join you. I forbid it."

"Mrs. Drake, Bobby is 18 after all. Legally he can decide for himself."

"You are not getting our son back!" She fiercely pointed a finger at Hank, determination and fear lining every movement. "We will not let him leave this house!"

"You guys nearly got him killed last year!" the father added. His eyes found me, and he shook his head. "You have no shame, recruiting kids to do your dirty work. Whatever it is they said to you, don't listen to them. You'll only get hurt staying with them."

I scowled. "Why don't you do us all a favour and don't talk about things you obviously know nothing about?"

"Now, now—" Hank started.

"This isn't fair! I want to go with them," a young male voice interrupted. Interested, I craned my neck to see a blond teen with a red shirt and baggy brown shorts coming down the stairs. He was cute, really cute, I noted with a small blush. _Down girl_, I told myself firmly. This wasn't the time nor the place.

"Bobby, wait for us upstairs!" his mother commanded.

"Mr. and Mrs. Drake, please," Hank tried once more. "Just talk to him about it."

"I've already called the police," she said coldly. "They are on their way." And with those parting words the couple walked into the house and slammed the door behind them.

"Well," I said with a scowl, still miffed at the father's words. "That was fun."

Logan rolled his eyes. "We tried it your way," Logan reminded us, then lifted his foot and kicked in the door with a resounding crash. The couple cringed away, but Logan ignored them and focused his attention on Bobby. "You coming or what?"

The teen grinned and raced to the door, celebrating his freedom and not looking back. Logan however, looked at the Drakes. "You son's a mutant," he said frostily as he left the house. "Deal with it." Then he slammed the door on them and we all walked back to the helicopter where Bobby was already waiting.

"Alright!" Bobby crowed as we took off. "The X-men are back!"

"Well, kind of. It's just us," Logan said. "By the way, Bobby, this is Taylor; Taylor, Bobby."

He flashed a cute grin at me and stuck out his hand. Carefully I took his hand, and was disappointed to find out I hated his touch as much as I hated everyone else's.

"Nice to meet you," I said, trying to cover up my discomfort.

"You too." He turned his attention back to Logan. "What about Kitty? Couldn't you catch her before she left?"

"You know where she is?" Logan asked sharply.

"She told me she was heading to Genosha. Her ship left this morning."

Without skipping a beak Hank turned the helicopter, heading for a new course. Knowing it was going to be a while I headed back to one of the seats and sat down, Bobby joined me a couple seconds later. He slouched in his seat and looked at me quizzically.

"So how'd you get involved?"

My eyes darkened and I fixed my gaze on the floor. My hand unconsciously touching the bandage on my head. "My parents turned me into the MRD. Logan and Hank busted me out and I stuck around," I said shortly.

"Oh."

"So what exactly are your powers?" I quickly changed the topic before the silence could grow awkward. "I know your codename is Iceman, but no one explained what you did."

He smiled, relief etched in his actions. Apparently he appreciated the change in topic too. "I control ice and can shift into an ice form. What are your powers?"

I chuckled. "Not all that different front your really. I control earth, wind, fire and water."

He laughed too. "Cool. That'll make the danger room sessions interesting."

"Danger room?"

He gaped at me. "You don't know what the danger room is? Logan, is that really you up there?"

"Can it Popsicle," Logan growled. "The danger room is out of commission for the moment. I haven't had a chance to introduce it to her yet."

"So what is the danger room?" I asked impatiently.

Bobby was still explaining the horrors and perils of the danger room when we reached Kitty's ship. I had long ago stopped listening for important information, instead settling on being amused by Bobby's obvious revulsion of it. Though I had to admit, some of the stories he told about the adventures in the room were rather funny.

Suddenly a girl appeared out of nowhere, laughing merrily. "It's about time!" she cried.

"Where did you come from?" I asked, completely disoriented by her sudden appearance.

The girl, Kitty I presumed, looked a little surprised. "Um…"

"Taylor, this is Kitty or Shadowcat. Kitty, this is Taylor, our newest member. Kitty has the ability to phase through objects. Which is how she got in."

"Oh," I said, feeling a bit stupid. "Nice to meet you."

She grinned in a friendly manner. "Nice to meet you too. So where are we going?"

"Well, unless you know where we can find someone else to bring back, we're going back to the mansion," Logan said.

"You couldn't find Peter or Kurt?"

"Peter wished to remain in Russia with his family and you know Kurt, it's almost impossible to track him down," Hank explained.

She sighed. "Yeah, I know. So has the mansion been rebuilt then?"

I shook my head. "We're living in the tunnels underneath. The ruins are still untouched above ground."

Kitty shuddered and rubbed her arms. "Creepy," she muttered.

"Tell me about it," Bobby said. "Do you think we could ever get the place fixed up?"

"Perhaps we can get Warren to help with that," Hank said thoughtfully. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"Yeah, but he would have to get the funds from his father, and that sounds a little more easily said than done," I pointed out.

"True."

The trip back was fairly uneventful, with a small side trip to pick up some groceries. I mostly sat and listened to the others catching up, doing my best not to feel somewhat left out. If had been a years since they say each other, it made sense that they would want to catch up, and I refused to be selfish enough to demand attention.

Once we arrived at home safely, the others went to the computer to see if they could more people to recruit and I lugged all the groceries to the kitchen and started putting them away. I was through about half the bags when Kitty and Bobby walked through the door, small frowns on their faces.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked in concern. It didn't bode well for the X-men if our two newest recruits weren't happy.

"Rogue's here talking to Logan," Kitty explained.

I paused in the middle of putting bread in the cupboard and looked at the pair. "Really? Do you know why?"

They shook their heads. "No idea, but I suppose we'll find out soon enough."

Just then Rogue, Hank and Logan walked in. The three of us stopped talking and stared at Logan solemnly as he quickly briefed us on the Brotherhood's plans. An attack on Senator Kelly tomorrow at noon during the press conference. We all talked plans and strategies for hours, during supper and clean up too. Eventually we all agreed on what had to be done and went to bed. The next morning we were out the door and in our uniforms a little after 11:30 am and arrived just in time.

The attack was a bust, from the very beginning. The Brotherhood didn't even show up, and we wouldn't have escaped if Warren hadn't shown up in time. Sure, it had felt good, releasing some frustrations on the MRDs, but knowing that our first true mission turned out to be a fluke was down right disheartening. After we found out about Rogue just disappearing, no sign of her with the MRD we realized what she had done, and let's just say that no one was happy with Rogue once we all returned to the mansion.

Bobby and Kitty had a long ragging session on the girl, Logan, Warren and Hank talked about what was to be done and eventually decided they wouldn't do anything. Rogue made her choice, they couldn't force her to fight for them. I, never being close to Rogue, simply accepted it and dealt with the housecleaning things that had to be done. I made sure Bobby and Kitty had everything they needed, made supper, cleaned and in general did the things no one else was feeling up to doing.

Even though we didn't really lose anything, we never had Rogue to lose in the first place, the taste of defeat law lay bitter on our tongues. The senator's new conference didn't help any with that. All in all, it was a pretty crappy day for the X-men.


	3. Hindsight part 3

_All right, I'm really surprised—pleasantly so—about all the attention this story has gotten so far, so I'm going to continue as fast as I can. For the people who've been wondering, I imagine Taylor's powers as something along the lines of the__ Avatar the last Airbender__ stuff. Not very original, I know, but that's the way life works. Taylor gets a little more action in this chapter, so I hope you're happy._

_Any concerns, constructive criticism, feel free to let me know, I love knowing what you guys are thinking._

_And thanks to everyone who reviewed so far._

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 3: Hindsight part 3**

Several weeks passed and being the nice guy that he is, Warren paid to have the mansion rebuilt. Everyone was ecstatic about it, even more so once it was almost finished. I was happy to be getting my own room—Kitty and I had had to share a room since their were wasn't enough space in the sublevels—and a kitchen specially designed with me in mind. Everyone liked my cooking so much they begged me into kitchen duty every night. Eventually I had given up on not doing it, so I simply said I would do it all the time as long as I got to help with the designs of the kitchen. I got my wish, but also had to make all the meals. It was a bittersweet victory.

Still, I was determined to thank Warren for everything he had done for us. It wasn't every day a millionaire came around and offered to rebuild a mansion for you. That was why I was walking with Logan and Warren during the tour while everyone else had disappeared to do some exploring.

"All the work should be done by morning," Warren explained as we walked through the halls. "And by the afternoon you'll have your furniture. And that's the top to bottom tour," he said as we walked into the main entrance area that likely had a special name that I wasn't aware of. "What do you think?"

"It's awesome," I said with a nod. "Thank so much, Warren."

"Thank dear old Dad, it's his money." He grinned at me then saw Logan's troubled face. "You don't look happy. Why aren't you happy?"

Logan sighed heavily. "Sorry, Warren. You know, new building, old ghosts…But thanks man."

"As I said, wasn't my money. But let's not mention it. For some reason he's under the impression that this is just a regular prep school."

I snorted. "I wonder how he got that impression," I commented dryly as we reached the front doors."

Warren grinned and looked at Logan. "So…have you changed your mind about Rogue?"

"Nope. We're not going after her, not after the way she hung us out to dry. Next move is hers." Logan opened the door and we all blinked as a rather imperious looking blonde lady dressed completely in white stood on the front step.

"Who are you?" I demanded rudely. I wasn't comfortable around strangers, and this woman's beauty injured my self-esteem, especially now that all my bandages had been removed, revealing my scars.

Warren completely ignored me and leaned forward with a flirtatious grin. "Hello, I'm Warren."

I rolled my eyes at his obvious interest and couldn't help but glower at the woman reproachfully as she coolly shook his hand.

"Emma Frost."

"Yeah, I know who you are," Logan said, not hiding his animosity. "Question is; what are you doing here?"

"Right to the point, I like that," she said, refusing to be intimidated. "I've decided to join the X-men."

"_You_ decided?" I asked with a snort. "How nice." Me, sarcastic? No.

"If you know who I am, then you are aware that I never come empty handed."

"What could you possibly have that we want?" I asked skeptically.

She smirked, getting that look that told us that she had a trump card. "I can find professor Xavier for you."

There was a long pause of dead silence and I turned to Logan, not liking his calculating look he sent Frost. I didn't trust this woman, and the possibility of her joining us just bothered me. Finally Logan looked at me.

"Take her inside, keep an eye on her. I'll be in, in a moment."

I pursed my lips but nodded and led Frost into the mansion. I decided that the living room like area with the grand piano would do as a meeting room and I slouched against one of the walls while carefully watching Frost as she looked out the window.

Suddenly, my head began to throb, pressure building behind my eyes exponentially and I rubbed my temples while simultaneously glaring at the white figure. "Get out of my head," I snarled viciously. I thanked my lucky stars that I had met a telepath before in that gang I used to hang out with. He had helped me with my metal shields until he couldn't penetrate them. Whether Frost was strong enough to break them, I wasn't sure, but I sure as hell did not appreciate her rummaging around in my head without permission.

Slowly the pressure receded and Frost turned at looked at me critically. My own scowl deepened as her eyes lingered on the scar over my eye. "So much anger, so young," she murmured. I opened my mouth to retort angrily, but she cut me off with an imperious sweep of her hand. "Calm yourself, I didn't read your mind, your metal barriers are strong enough that I doubt even myself could break through them. It doesn't take a telepath to know you are troubled."

"I didn't ask you, so I would appreciate it if you could keep your opinions to yourself."

"Very well," she replied coldly, and turned to the door a split second before Hank lumbered in.

"I understand you have some information about professor Xavier," he said, Kitty and Bobby on his heels. Kitty was scowling heavily and had her arms cross across her chest and I was glad I wasn't the only one who didn't like the ice queen. Bobby, on the other hand, swept his eyes appreciatively over her figure and I could just imagine the things running through his head.

"We'll see about that," Logan grumbled as he walked in. "This is Emma Frost. Former headmistress of the Massachusetts Academy."

"Hm. Never heard of it," Kitty snipped.

"It was a secret little school that tried to imitate the Xavier institute," Logan explained.

"I didn't realize Charles Xavier held a monopoly when helping young mutants," Frost said mockingly.

"Yeah, but you didn't help them! You taught them how to bully people."

"Regardless of how some of my students may have behaved, I started my school for all the right reasons."

"Yet you closed it down. Why?"

"That is not your concern," she snapped, her eyes flashing angrily.

"Then we're through talking," Logan retorted. "There's the door."

There was a long pause as Logan and Frost glared angrily at each other. I was ready to intervene at the woman's slightest movement, but then she sighed and looked away.

"My students suffered greatly at the hands of anti-mutant crusaders. It's difficult to carry on teaching when your students are taken from you."

Against my better judgment I felt a surge of pity for her, she looked so lost and sad. Quickly I pushed the emotion aside, she probably wanted us to feel that way.

"So I closed my school and tried to do it alone." She walked over to the piano and gently placed a hand on it. "But I miss teaching. I miss being part of a team."

"But why this one?" Logan asked.

"Because we need each other."

"That's a big assumption there lady," I commented snidely. Her eyes flashed in my direction then refocused on Logan.

"Fact is, you can't operate Cerebro without a telepath." We all exchanged a glance.

"So that's what this is about. You want access to Cerebro."

"It is your best hope for finding missing mutants."

"Yeah, well, sorry. It was destroyed in the blast." He and Frost stared into each other's eyes for a moment and slowly her lips curved into a smirk.

"Its repairs are almost complete." It was a statement, not a question. Jeez, telepaths are creepy. "Ring me when it's ready." She passed Logan her card and strolled casually towards the door. Bobby rushed ahead and opened the door for her, grinning foolishly as she caressed his cheek on her way out. Kitty and I glared daggers at the boy and Kitty punched him soundly on the arm.

"She's a telepath, remember She knows what you're thinking."

Bobby rubbed his arm as Kitty flounced out of the room and looked thoroughly put out as he realized she was right.

"Oops," he muttered, watching her walk away.

"Real smooth, Popsicle," I snorted, using one of Logan's nicknames. I then turned my attention to Logan. "What are you going to do?" He ignored me, and stalked out of the room, growling under his breath. I exchanged a look with Hank and he sighed heavily.

"I'll talk to him," he promised, following the feral Canadian out the door. Bobby and I stood together for a moment. The silence was just beginning to grow awkward when Bobby turned to me with a sigh.

"So, now what"

I shrugged, willing myself not to blush under his gaze. "Um…how about lunch"

He beamed at me. "Sounds great!" he said enthusiastically, throwing an arm around my shoulders. I tensed immediately and he withdrew sheepishly. "Sorry," he apologized. "I keep forgetting that you don't like being touched."

I shrugged. "Don't worry about it. I'm trying to get used to it anyways." I forced a bright smile on my face and led the way to the kitchen. It killed me every time he did that. I wanted him to wrap his arms around me so bad, but at the same time I couldn't stand it, and I hated myself for that too.

I didn't feel like making anything spectacular, so I just made a small mountain of tuna sandwiches. Bobby promptly stuffed several into his mouth and was about to each even more before I slapped his hand away.

"Hey!" he exclaimed as she rubbed his hand. What was that for?"

"Don't be a pig," I ordered, a mocking scowl on my face. "The others need to eat too." I picked up the platter and walked out of the kitchen.

"Where are you going?"

"To deliver the sandwiches. The others probably don't even realize I've made lunch."

"And that's a problem because…"

I rolled my eyes. "Because I refuse to let you eat the leftovers." I let the door swing shut behind me and walked briskly to Kitty's room. Carefully balancing the heavy tray on one hand, I knocked on her door, and leapt back when she poked her head out through the door.

"Oh, sorry Taylor," she said weakly. "Didn't mean to startle you."

I shrugged it off. "Don't worry about it. Here, I made sandwiches."

Her eyes lit up. "Oh, thanks!" She snatched a few off the tray and eyed the filling with delight. "Tuna, my favorite!"

I chuckled. "Cool. Do you know where Logan and Hank are?"

She shook her head. "Sorry."

"It's fine. See ya later."

"Bye!" She ducked back inside her room and I began my search for the two large men.

Hank was actually fairly easy to find. He was tapping away on his computer, trying to get more information on Emma Frost. He thanked me profusely for the sandwiches and pointed me in the right direction to find Logan—who was in his room—and that only left Forge. I found him in Cerebro, muttering under his breath. Silently I tiptoed over to him and watched him work for a few minutes before speaking.

"I thought Logan had you working on the Danger Room."

He yelped and jumped straight in the air, banging his head against the controls. "Ow, jeez, Taylor. You've got to stop doing that," he whined as he robbed his head.

"Sorry," I said sheepishly, and offered the plate of sandwiches as a peace offering. "I made lunch, thought you might what some."

His eyes lit up and he eagerly stuffed one in his mouth. "Fanks," he muttered around the food in his mouth.

"Not a problem," I said with a smirk. "But you never answered my question."

He sighed, spitting some crumbs on my face and I discretely brushed them away while Forge swallowed. "Seems he wants to find the professor, though I don't know how being as we don't have a telepath…"

I looked at him in surprise. "Logan didn't tell you? This ice queen showed up on our front step and demanded to be on the team in exchange for finding the Professor."

His eyes widened. "Ooh. What did she look like?" he asked eagerly.

I sent him a dirty look. "You're asking a girl what she looked like? Personally, I think you're better off talking to Bobby." I sniffed disapprovingly. "He was falling all over himself to please her. Pathetic really."

He chuckled. "Jealous much?"

I flushed. "Shut up!" He just continued laughing and I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. I'll let you get back to work. Talk to you later, Forge."

"See ya, Taylor. Oh, by the way. Do you think you can make tacos for supper? I haven't had tacos in ages!"

I smiled at the dark haired genius. "I'll see what I can do."

The next day Forge had finished the repairs and Logan and called in Emma Frost. We all waited patiently in Cerebro as Logan led her to our secret weapon, Kitty and I scowled at her while Forge's eyes widened and a slick grin spread over his face.

"Miss Frost," Hank began. "I'd like to introduce you to Forge. The young man responsible for—"

"Let's just dispense with pleasantries and get on with it," she said coolly as she sat down on the chair.

"Told you she was an ice queen," I muttered to Forge.

She reached for the helmet-thing and Logan stopped her with a heavy scowl on his face. "You're on hollow ground here lady," he growled. "Don't make me regret this."

"Perhaps you'd rather I didn't find the Professor," she said icily. "You enjoy being in charge, don't you?" She yanked her hand away and reached for the helmet again. Logan didn't stop her.

"Okay," Forge began. "Go ahead and lay your—"

"Oh please, I read your mind on the way in," she interrupted.

Forge's shoulder slumped and he walked back to the rest of us. "Told you," I muttered under my breath once again, and we all waited for Frost to work her magic. It only took a few seconds for her to suddenly gasp and slowly take off the helmet.

"Where is he?" Logan demanded impatiently as she slowly turned.

"Genosha."

Logan snarled with fury and stalked to the door. "Suit up," he called over his shoulder. "Forge, the Blackbird better we flight worthy." Forge had a moment to consider it before swearing and pushing past all of us and raced to the hangar. Logan continued stalking out the door and Hank quickly followed him.

"So Magneto's got him," I murmured. "Interesting."

Kitty sighed and rubbed her forehead. "I don't like this at all," she muttered.

"Aw come on, Kitty," Bobby said with a grin. "It'll be fun!"

"Right," I muttered sarcastically. "Fun. That was the word I was looking for." Quickly I walked away from Cerebro and to my room. I changed into my leather outfit and walked down to the debriefing room where Hank and Frost were waiting.

"Where is everyone?" I asked as I sat down at the mahogany table.

"Kitty and Bobby are changing, Forge is trying to make the Blackbird flight worthy, and Logan is trying to find Scott."

"The guy who shoots lasers out his eyes?" I asked, trying to place him from all the stories Hank had told me about the former X-men.

"That's the one."

"Do you think he'll come?"

Hank considered it. "It seems likely. He will hope that now that we've located the Professor it will be easier to find Jean. It will help that the Professor had been like a father to him."

I nodded slowly and waited in silence while one by one the others joined us. Finally, the doors opened one last time and Logan and another man I assumed was Scott stood in the doorway.

"Let's go," Logan growled.

Wordlessly we all stood and walked to the hangar. For a moment I couldn't see Forge, but with a loud clank a piece of metal that was no doubt important fell to the ground from underneath the Blackbird. Forge's head appeared, poking out through the hole with an aggravated moan. He turned to us and blinked with surprise.

"Oh, where did you guys come from?" He jumped to the ground lightly and picked up the part.

"Just tell me she'll fly," Logan half begged.

"Oh, yeah. Absolutely," Forge said while fiddling with the scrap of metal. We all jumped as something else fall to the ground with a clang and he grinned at us sheepishly as we stared at him. "Pretty sure."

"Hm." Hank didn't look convinced. "Perhaps we should wait until Forge completes the repairs and—"

"We leave now," Logan snapped. "Forge, climb in. Your job is to keep us in the air." He led the way to the ramp while Forge pulled himself into the hole. We were about to board while the doors to the hangar opened again and Emma Frost sauntered in. She passed with a small glance at Scott.

"Hm, Wolverine's more desperate than I thought."

Scott stared at her retreating figure and turned to Logan. "And she is?"

"Temporary," Logan growled. "Let's go."

I made myself comfortable in one of the seats closer to the back where I was able to keep an eye on everyone at once. Yeah, I know I was paranoid, couldn't exactly do anything about it. Throughout the trip I sat by myself and listened to the others' conversations. Kitty and Bobby were debating how badly the mission was going to go, and Scott and Frost were talking about Jean. More amusing though was how Logan was stuck between Hank and Forge as they tried to get the cloaking on line.

"Hey."

I turned in my seat and found Scott looking at me. Or at least I thought he was looking at me, it was hard to tell with the red visor hiding his eyes.

"What's your name?"

"Taylor, codename Aether."

"I'm—"

"Scott Summers or Cyclops. You shoot lasers out your eyes," I interrupted him with a small smile. "I've heard some stories," I said by way of an explanation.

"I see. So what are your powers?"

I cocked my head at him. There was no hint of a smile or anything friendly about him. It didn't seem like he was trying to play nice at all. Probably just trying to figure out all our individual strengths for the fight ahead.

"Control over fire, water, earth and air."

He nodded thoughtfully. "Interesting." He turned away from me, and I didn't bother trying to keep his attention. He didn't strike me as a very cheerful fellow. His depressing personality likely was because of the loss of Jean, from the stories Hank told me, he had been a much more upbeat person before the explosion.

We arrived in Genosha without any mishaps, surprisingly. Kitty scouted a head, disappearing through the floor down the sublevels while the rest of us filed off the jet.

"Are you sure about this?" Hank asked Logan.

By way of answering Logan unsheathed his claws and proceeded to hack away at the floor until there was a hole large enough for us to slip through. Bobby converted to his ice form and made a slide for everyone to go down. I ignored it and created a mini tornado to float to the ground and helped Bobby melt the slide, using fire instead of my control over water.

"It's like an iron maze down here," Kitty said with awe as she approached us. "We're definitely on his turf."

"Com-links on," Logan ordered. "We're splitting up." I adjusted the mechanism in my ear then followed the others' examples by going off down one of the halls.

It was rather creepy, stalking through the silent, cold metal halls, warily anticipating some sort of attack. Though still trying to be stealthy, I did my best to be quick as well. I hurriedly opened door, melting the locks if they happened to be locked. I wasn't too far into my search when suddenly the hair on the back o my neck stood on end. I paused and warily looked around, but still was taken completely off guard when metal rose up off the ground and wrapped itself around me in a smooth metal ball.

I could only stare in shock at my new cell. It was rather small, just barely large enough for me to stand in, but it felt like it was growing smaller with every passing second. Against my will, my breath started to pick up, and my hands started to tremble as I pressed them against the cold metal.

"Let me out," I whispered. Quickly I punched the walls, ignoring the throbbing pain I created. "Let me out." I punched the walls repeatedly and paused for a short moment when I felt the vibrations in the metal. Metal was kind of part of earth, could I control it as well?

Quickly I set about trying to prove my theory correct. I closed my eyes and tried to feel the metal, see how it moved, how I could bend it to my will. After a few minutes of slapping the metal, I began to get used to it and smiled slowly. I took a deep breath and slammed my fist into the metal, ginning when it bent outwards. I flexed my hand as the power trickled through my arm and whooped out loud.

"That's it baby, work with me!" I slammed both hands into the metal and started to pry it apart, whooping when it worked. "Damn, I'm good!" I said with a large grin as I stepped out of my prison.

"I'm impressed, sheila," a voice drawled. "You certainly look a lot better from when I saw you last."

I crouched into my ready position and glared at a red haired man with a ridiculous looking suit. Metal canisters rested on his back, tubes running out from them and connecting to his hands. "Who are you?" I demanded rudely.

"Don't remember me? I'm wounded." He rubbed his chest where his heart would be and cackled maniacally. "But now it's my turn for a little fun." He did something with his hands and flames shot out of the tubes, cackling he manipulated the fire to look like some flaming bird and grinned cockily at me.

I arched an eyebrow at him and hands my hands in front of me, palms parallel to the floor. Slowly I lowered my hands and the flames he had previously been controlling snuffed out. He stared blankly at his hands then looked at me.

"Shit," he muttered.

I snorted created a fireball in my hands and lobbed it in his direction. It exploded at his feet and sent him flying through the metal walls. Cautiously I followed him and once determining that he was knocked unconscious, looked at my surroundings and blinked in surprise.

Bobby was trapped by a large piece of metal, held up against the wall next to Scott. Hank and Frost were trapped to the wall with another piece of metal, Logan's fists under their chins and his claws beginning to pop. Kitty was hanging on to a smaller piece of metal, floating above a large hole in the floor. A man dressed in red and purple with a large cape and odd-looking helmet floated before them. I assumed he was the one controlling all the metal around here, and likely the metal on Logan's bones as well.

"Ah," the old man said with a creepy smile. "So your newest recruit decided to join us." He flicked his wrist and a large scrap of metal came soaring through the air to my face. I stepped forward confidently and punched it, tearing it in half as it skittered to the floor.

"Is that the best you've got, Buckethead?" I asked mockingly.

His eyes narrowed and he turned away from the others. He gestured again and the floor began to fall away from under my feet. I whirled around and started a small tornado, keeping me from fall through the hole. Lightly I touched down a few feet away and studied the old man carefully, trying to decide the best method of attack.

"Aether, get his helmet off," Frost called. "I can get into his head when it's off."

Objective, identified.

"Got it," I called. Quickly I twisted my hand in a graceful arc and pulled water out of the air. I gestured harshly and the water soared towards the man, freezing into lethal icicles that soared towards his head. I didn't expect them to do anything; they were just a distraction. As he focused on them I raced forward, shoving the air out of my way to decrease air resistance and doubling my speed. Before Buckethead even realized what happened, I was in his face, knocking the helmet of his head. I danced out of his way and blew the helmet towards me, clutching it to my chest as he snarled with anger.

Emma was already in action. He closed her eyes in concentration and a silvery helmet-like thing appeared around her head and Magneto's as well. I watched carefully and he snared again and slowly raised his hand and Logan's claws slowly began popping out. Emma lost her concentration with a gasp and Magneto turned to me with glowing eyes. The helmet soared out of my hands before I could stop it, and snapped around his head. I crouched warily, preparing to fight again, but Magneto stopped me.

"Stop, or I will kill them."

I froze in place, and scowled at him. Slowly I straightened and raised my hands by way of surrender and gasped as my feet sank into the floor so I couldn't move. When I lost my balance and fell forward my hands got stuck as well. I snarled as I instinctively tried to free myself, but froze at Magneto's warning look. His attention turned back to Wolverine, and he didn't let up.

"Wait, don't do this! It's my fault!" Logan bellowed.

"It is, isn't it? And what would Charles think of his little commander now? I daresay he wouldn't approve." I watched helplessly as Magneto floated towards the trio and struggled to get free.

"We know he's here. Just take us to him!"

"All you had to do was ask." Quickly the metal bands sucked into the wall and Hank, Logan and Frost fell to the floor. Scott and Bobby were also released from their bonds and the floor reappeared under Kitty's feet so she could jump to the ground. The floor spat out my hands and feet so I was free and I quickly joined the other X-men as they followed Magneto to another wall that he opened with a wave of his hand, revealing a large room occupied with a large canopy bed where an old, bald man lay.

"He appeared on my island one week ago. We found him like this on our coastline, fallen on the rocks."

"Professor," Kitty murmured and she rushed to the bed. The rest of us followed, but I hung back a ways. I hadn't known the Professor after all. We waited anxiously as Frost laid a gloved hand on the Professor's forehead. Finally she looked up.

"He has no brain activity."

Kitty closed her eyes and leaned into Bobby for comfort, and I couldn't help but feel a flare of jealousy, though I quickly squished it down.

"Charles is a dear friend," Magneto said solemnly. "All I've been doing is caring for him."

I pursed my lips in disbelief, but didn't say anything. I didn't know anything about Magneto's or the Professor's past. They could've been great friends for all I knew.

"More like keeping an eye on him," Logan said as though reading my mind. "We both know you're afraid of Charles." Logan growled as Magneto turned to him with a dangerous look in his eye.

"But the question is," Hank quickly interrupted the two men, stepping in front of Logan before he could do anything stupid. "Will you let us take him home?"

"Of course," Magneto said smoothly. "You are his children, his place is with you. However, I wish you would consider making Genosha your home." His eyes rested on me and I shifted uncomfortably. "No more violence, no more—"

"Yeah," Logan interrupted. "We've seen the billboards. Thanks but no thanks."

"The offer stands." Again I felt like this comment was directed primarily at me, but I ignored him as best as I could. "Only the next time you decide to drop by, Wolverine, use the front door."

It didn't take up long to carry the Professor up to the Blackbird, Magneto guiding us so we wouldn't get lost. I helped as best as I could to get the Professor comfortable on the makeshift bed, but there wasn't much I could do. So instead I just sat back and watched, tapping my foot impatiently as we flew home.

Back at the mansion, Forge hooked up some sort of mechanism that would slow the Professor's aging while he was in a coma. We placed him on the bed, put the glass down and hooked up the machines so that all his bodily functions would be monitored. Then we just stood there are looked at the Professor, hardly able to believe he wasn't with us.

"We'll find a way to bring you back Charles, no matter what it takes, or how long," Logan promised, saying aloud what we were all thinking.

Suddenly there was some sort of whispering sound and we all looked around cautiously.

"What is that sound?" Kitty asked tentatively from her seat on a bench that we set up for visiting purposes.

"It's like someone whispering," Bobby said.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but that sounds an awful lot like—"

"Charles," Logan interrupted Hank, confirming his suspicions.

"This is impossible," Frost murmured. There was a bright flash of light and we all turned to see a ghostly image of Charles' head floating above his body. Logan approached tentatively.

"Charles, is that really you?"

"Yes, Logan," the head said. Shivers crawled up my spine, it was kind of creepy hearing a man in a coma speak.

"What's happening? Who did this to you?"

"I wish I knew. I remember nothing."

"Charles, there was an unexplained blast at the institute, you've been missing. Jean still is," Hank explained.

"My X-men, time is limited I come to you with an urgent message."

We all listened in horror as the Professor told us about the future, warning us to stand together and fight, and that Logan had to lead us. Scott almost walked out, but reluctantly stayed after the Professor talked to him. Honestly, I wasn't too impressed with Scott, he needed to get off his high horse and realize that just because Jean was gone didn't mean there wasn't anything else good in life.

When he left with a promise to return, we all stood silent for a long time before Logan finally spoke.

"Whatever's eating away at us, we get past it," he said firmly. "We rise to the occasion because we're a team and we've got a job to do. The world needs the X-men."

I smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Nice pep talk, Furryface," I said approvingly. Completely ruining the moment. He glared at me.

"Shut up, Taylor," Kitty snapped. "Just bask in the aura of determination and responsibility for a moment.

I shrugged with an impish grin. "Alright, fine, I'll bask."


	4. Overflow

_Here's the next chapter. I was really eager to post something today—I'm not exactly sure why—so I'm sorry if the ending seems a bit rushed. I hope you like this chapter anyways._

_Anyways, to the importance at hand. For any story to be successful, it needs to have layers. One layer I'm hoping to work on over the next few chapters is romance. Now, I know I have Taylor crushing on Bobby, but I already know it's not going to last. Not only because Bobby and Kitty are just so cute together, but because I don't think their characters mesh very well. So here's my question to you folks:_

_**Who should Taylor end up with**_**?**

_I will admit, I'm thinking a lot about pairing her up with Gambit, because lets face it everyone, Gambit is hot, he __**needs**__ to wind up with the X-men eventually (I'm very adamant about that), and Gambit is one of my favorite characters and one of the only men around Taylor's age._

_Let me know what you guys think, about Gambit or if you have any other suggestions with who she should end up with, I NEED TO KNOW!!!!!!!_

_I do not own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 4: Overflow**

I hummed impatiently and drummed my fingers on the top of the kitchen table. I silently fidgeted in my seat and looked up for the millionth time in two minutes at the kitchen timer.

Two more minutes, I was going insane.

I sighed heavily and dropped my forehead on the table, trying not to think about the mouth-watering smells of chocolate drifting over from the oven.

"I _can_ wait for the timer. I _can _wait for the timer," I muttered to myself. It would have sounded more convincing if I actually believed it.

"Hey, Taylor. What's cooking?" Bobby asked casually.

I looked up to see the large doors of the kitchen swinging shut as he lounged in one of the high back chairs. He sniffed the air appreciatively and moaned.

"Oh, God. Is that chocolate cake a I smell?"

I glared at him. "Brownies, now stop reminding me! I'm trying to be patient over here!"

"Who's being patient?" Kitty asked as she walked in the door. "And about what?"

"Taylor made brownies!" Bobby explained, his attention entirely focused on the oven.

Kitty's eyes lit up and sat down next to Bobby. "Oh thank God. I was craving chocolate."

I moaned again and thumped my head against the table. I was just beginning t get a headache when the sweet, dulcet tones of the kitchen timer chirped at me. I leapt to my feet and hurried over to the oven, while Bobby and Kitty leaned towards me. Carefully I took the cake out of the oven and poked a toothpick into the center and examined it carefully.

"Well?" Bobby asked eagerly.

I beamed at him. "They're done!" He whooped at reached towards the pan and I had to quickly swat his hand away before he didn't something stupid.

"Ow! What was that for?" He rubbed his hand dramatically and gave me his famous puppy dog eyes. I just scoffed at him.

"They have to cool, you idiot. And I have to make icing." He moaned, but didn't argue. Instead he simply drooled while I made the icing and Kitty got out the plates and forks. Thankfully, it didn't take to long before I deemed the brownies good enough and cut them into generous pieces. We were just beginning to dig in when Emma sauntered into the room.

"Hey Emma," Bobby said cheerfully. "What some brownies?"

She looked at the chocolaty goodness and sneered at Kitty and me. "And have that go straight to my thighs? I don't think so."

Kitty and I exchanged looks. Neither of us was really concerned about our weight, we worked out on a daily basis after all. Emma did not have the right to look down her snobby little nose at us for enjoying ourselves every once in a while! So it was with that justification that Kitty and I turned to her and began to munch on our brownies with exaggerated chews and loud moans of ecstasy. Emma's expression flickered to one of confusion then longing before abruptly shutting down as her resolve firmed.

"Disgusting little pigs," she muttered as she stalked out of the room. Her exit might have been taken as the showy extravagance she hoped for, if it hadn't looked like she was actually running away before she gave in to temptation. Kitty and I laughed at her retreating back, and started to eat normally again. Bobby only looked at us oddly before shrugging.

"Girls," he muttered.

After polishing off my piece I cut four more and placed them on separate plates.

"I'm going to take these to the others. Do you guys know where they are?"

"Scott is in his room. Forge is working on the Blackbird. Logan and Hank I think are working in the computer lab," Kitty answered.

I nodded. "Alright, see you guys later." I walked down to the computer lab first and snuck up behind the two men while they started a picture of Africa that was displayed on the large screen.

"Hmm," Hank was saying. "I don't see any climate abnormalities. In fact, there's hardly a cloud in the sky over all of Africa."

"Should there be?" I asked. Hank jumped and spun his chair around to glare at me. Logan merely glanced in my direction then continued looking at the screen.

"Taylor, would you please not do that?" Hank demanded, a playful scowl on his face. Then he caught sight of the brownies. "Oh. Are those for us?"

I chuckled. "Some of them." I passed him a plate and Logan another. "The other two are for Scot and Forge. So why are you looking at Africa's weather?" I sat down in a nearby chair and looked at them expectantly.

"Charles was just in contact with Logan," Hank explained. "Apparently we should be expecting trouble in Africa soon."

"In the weather?"

"It's Storm."

I frowned, trying to remember where I had heard that name before. "She's that lady who controlled the weather in those stories you told me, right?"

Logan nodded. "Yeah, that's the one."

"But why would she try and cause trouble?"

"We don't know, but if Chuck says to expect it, we likely will find out why," Logan said grimly while polishing off the brownie.

"So we're going to need to find Storm, and soon," I mused.

Hank swallowed his rather large bite of brownie and looked at Logan apprehensively. "That will require the use of Cerebro. Which means—"

"I know, Hank," Logan growled.

"And she'll want something in exchange," Hank added.

"I know, Hank!"

My lips twitched, but I wisely kept myself from laughing at their exchange. "I wouldn't approach Emma for a while," I suggested sagely. "I think Kitty and I put her in a bad mood."

"What did you do?" Hank asked.

I shifted guiltily in my seat, but flashed Hank winning smile. "Nothing," I said innocently. Logan snorted. "Ok, we may have rubbed it in her face that we were eating brownies while she wasn't, but she started it!"

"Real mature," Logan said sarcastically, but I could see he was trying hard not to smile.

"Whatever. I'm going to deliver these last two brownies. I'll catch you guys later." I rose from my chair and walked out of the room to the hangar where I hoped I would find Forge. I was in luck; he was there. His voice echoed in the large room as he cursed a blue streak.

"You ok in there?" I called out once I reached the hole in the bottom of the Blackbird where his foot was hanging out.

"No!"

I nodded slowly, considering my next move. "I have something to cheer you up," I offered.

Forge grunted. "No offense, Taylor, but unless it happens to be a new deflector plate I doubt it's going to work."

"Hm. I suppose I should eat this brownie then?"

There was a loud clunk, a loud, "ow!" then Forge stuck his head out of the hole, rubbing it with one hand. "Did you say brownies?" He spied the plates in my hands and eagerly snatched one out of my grasp. I watched in amusement as he took a large bite and hummed in satisfaction.

"Feeling better?"

"Yes."

I laughed. "I'm glad." I looked up at the Blackbird and considered it for a moment. It didn't seem too bad. "So, how goes the work?"

"Well, I'm almost done. I just have one more thing to do, its just giving me some difficulties," he said sheepishly.

I thought back to the expletives I heard when entering the hangar. "You don't say," I said sarcastically.

He had the grace to look embarrassed. "Yeah, anyways, these brownies are fantastic!"

"Thanks, I just hope Bobby hasn't eaten them all yet."

His eyes grew wide. "You mean you left them in the kitchen with him unattended?"

I leaned away from him, startled by his intensity. "Um…yes?"

He groaned and smacked his forehead with his palm. "Oh no." Quickly he shoved his now empty plate in my hands and pushed me towards the door. "What are you waiting for? Go! Save them!"

I hurried out the door while he watched me then slowed to a walk once the doors shut and I was out of view. I shook my head as I walked down the hall. "What a sad, strange little man," I murmured. I looked at the last brownie in my hand and changed direction to head to the wing of the school with our rooms.

I reached Scott's room and hesitated for a moment, shifting nervously from foot to foot trying to decide if I should bother him or not. Finally I decided, what the heck, and knocked brazenly on the wooden door. I pressed my ear to the door but didn't hear anything so I knocked again. "Scott?" Still no answer. "Alright, I'm coming in. So if you're indecent, you better get decent pretty darn fast." I reached out for the door knob, but suddenly found the door open and Scott's unshaven face glaring at me.

"What?" he demanded harshly. I blinked in surprise at his sudden appearance and stuttered out an answer.

"Oh, um…hi Scott. I was just…" I remembered the brownie and held it up to his face. "I made brownies," I blurted.

"And?"

I glared at him; I didn't appreciate his attitude at all. "I brought you a piece."

"Don't want it."

I perched a hand on my hip and my glare intensified. "Why not?"

"Not hungry," he grunted.

"You haven't eaten all day," I accused. "How can you not be hungry? Besides, I went to all this trouble of making it and bringing to you, the least you can do is eat one piece."

"I'm not hungry," he repeated hotly.

"Yes you are, you just won't eat the brownie because you're in self-denial. You refuse to be anything remotely happy ever since Jean disappeared." His fist pounded against the wall near my head, but I refused to flinch back. I was stubborn that way.

"Don't you dare pretend like you know what I'm going through right now," he said in a voice shaky with suppressed emotions. "It's none of your business."

"It will be once it becomes a liability to the team, then it's all of our business. And mark my words, Scott, that day will come. I think it's best we get everything dealt with now." He started to shut the door and I quickly blocked its path with my foot. "Don't run away from this, Scott, it's only going to get worse."

"Don't you dare tell me what to do! You didn't even know here!"

"No, I didn't," I said calmly. "But that doesn't mean I can't see how much your grief is becoming unhealthy. And I know that Jean wouldn't have wanted this."

"You have no right—"

"I'm just saying what everyone is thinking," I said cruelly. "I'm not saying you have to forget about her Scott, but you have to let her go."

"I'm not giving up on her!"

"You don't have to, but you need to prepare yourself in case she's in a place where you can't follow. Not yet at least. You heard the Professor, we need you. And that means all of you has to be here. If we can't rely on you, you might as well leave now." I watched his face carefully, and when nothing changed I sighed heavily and looked away. Quickly I shoved the plate with the brownie in his hands and stepped back.

"At least think about it," I managed to say before the door shut in my face. I glared at the door for a moment then walked away. Nothing I could do anymore, I had my say. I wish it did more good. With a heavy sigh I turned away from the door and trudged back to the kitchen where Kitty was valiantly trying to protect the rest of the brownies from Bobby's greedy fingers.

"But I'm still hungry!" he whined.

"Then have a sandwich," she snapped. "You already had more than your share."

"But I want more!"

I rolled my eyes and dumped Forge's plate in the sink. "You are such a baby," I muttered.

He looked at me, offended. "I am not!" He couldn't have sounded more like a whiny three year old, and he knew it too.

"Right," I scoffed. "Anways…" I picked up the plastic lid made to cover the brownie pan and snapped it shut and Bobby looked at me mournfully. He looked so cute when he pouted like that…no, I had to remain strong! Before I could change my mind I place the brownies on top of the fridge—out of sight out of mind—just as Logan entered the kitchen.

"Suit up," he ordered. "We found Storm. Don't bother with Scott," he added over his shoulder and he walked back out of the kitchen.

Bobby looked confused. "Since when we were looking for Storm?"

"Does it matter?" Kitty asked, exasperated. "Let's go!" Quickly I went back to my room, changed into my suit and hurried out to the jet. I was the fourth one in the debriefing room; Logan, Hank, and Emma were already waiting when I arrived. I had just sat down when Kitty and Bobby came in.

"Alright, here's the deal—" Just then Scott entered the room and sat sullenly in one of the chairs. There was a brief moment of silence then Logan continued as if Scott hadn't interrupted him. "We go to Africa, we find Storm, we bring her back."

There was a pregnant pause then people shifted in their seats.

"That's it?" Bobby asked.

"_That's_ your brilliant plan?" Emma scoffed.

"I like it." Everyone looked at me as though I was crazy. "What? It's simple, easy to remember and leaves enough room for a bit of creative interpretation and improvisation, which is an important life skill," I said sagely.

"You're insane," Kitty said with a sigh.

"There is a fine line between genius and insanity," I said loftily. "I just happen to erase that line."

Logan rolled his eyes. "Enough chit chat, people, let's go." Quickly we filed out of the room and walked purposefully towards the hangar where Forge was just beginning to walk away with a couple buckets of water. Apparently he had been able o fix the problem and finish polishing the jet. How nice for us to be able to leave with the jet in perfect working order.

"No!" he exclaimed as we approached. "No, no, no, no!" HE raced out to stop us, but was easily pushed back by Hank's approach. "I just got it put back together!" We continued to ignore him and walked up the ramp. "Ok, this is only a test run right? A sort of take it around the block and try her out kind of thing. Right?"

"No," Kitty said simply. "Africa."

"Africa! But you…but you guys… but…" he stuttered. He moaned and his shoulders slumped forward. "Be gentle." I felt a surge of sympathy for the poor guy, but apparently Logan didn't.

"Yeah, right." His claws flashed out and he approached the jet with a predatory walk. "The first scratch is always the most painful," Logan said casually. He reached out to the jet and without batting an eyelash raked his claws slowly across the metal, unleashing an ungodly screech and Forge looked like he was about of have a apoplexy. "So now you can relax," Logan said with a smirk. He finished climbing into the jet and the door shut behind him, leaving a pathetic looking Forge behind.

Once we took off, I took out a pack of cards I remembered to bring to keep boredom in check. For the next few hours of flight it took to get to Africa, I played Bullshit, poker, Egyptian Ratscrew, and even Go Fish with Kitty and Bobby. Sometimes we managed to get the others to play to, but we were smart enough to keep Emma out of our rounds of Bullshit. That was one game that would really suck to be playing against a telepath. Finally we reached our destination, right in the middle of a large storm.

"Crap," I murmured, see the rains flooding the ground below us. Then I saw the tornado coming right at us. "Double crap!" I yelled.

"Taylor, put it out!" Logan exclaimed.

Obediently I thrust my hands out towards the wind and trying to squish it down. It was hard. AS much as I pressed down and tried to order the winds to disperse, I could feel another will forcing to keep swirling, and the angry winds wanted to obey that voice more.

"No," I growled. "You will listen to me!" I grunted and pressed even harder and slowly the winds started to slow down, but not soon enough to do us any good. As soon as the plane hit the tornado, I lot balance and my concentration. I fell to the floor and slid across the metal as we whirled in a couple circle and crashed towards the ground. We must have landed in the water, because water poured into the jet, filling up quickly.

Kitty unbuckled herself from her seat and rushed forward to get Hank and Logan out. Scott blasted a hole in the roof for the rest of us and we quickly swam towards the surface. Once we surfaced, we swam to the edge of the reservoir and climbed out, surveying the situation.

"This isn't good," I muttered, watching a tree float by, swept away by the current. "Come one Bobby, let's get us across." Working together we froze a nice path towards the floating figure dressed in white, and towards dry ground. As we approached, the rain—that was already beating down on us so hard it hurt—mixed with hail.

"Ah, come on," I muttered, holding my hands up and using my powers to stop the hail and rain from hitting my body. Logan started cutting the things out of mid air, Scott was blasting them before they could hit him, Kitty just phased through it all while Bobby made a sort of shield for him and Hank.

Then out of nowhere a roof from one of huts ripped off and knocked Bobby back in the water. My heart leapt to my throat and I could only watch helplessly as Kitty rushed towards the water with a cry and started to fish him out. He had to let go over her phasing ability though, then got hit on the head with a particularly large hailstone. Hank jumped in the water and grabbed both of them before they could float away.

"Keep going, they're alright!" he called and obediently we turned back to continue what we started.

I took the lead to keep the hail from hitting us, though Logan and Scott occasionally had to hit or blast a stray stone out of the way. Emma just turned to diamond and passed us, subtly in her own way gloating.

"Diamond?" Logan questioned, tapping her shoulder with his claws. "It would have been nice to know you could do this."

"It's not my favorite form," she explained. "It prevents me from using my telepathy."

"How unfortunate," I muttered. We reached the top of the hill in pretty good time and stared at the floating figure.

"There she is," Logan muttered.

"Shoot her down," Emma told Scott.

"Are you insane?" he demanded.

"It's her or Africa, you choose."

"Oh stop it," I said irritably. All we have to do is get her down."

"Oh, and I suppose you have some way of doing that," Emma snapped.

"As a matter of fact… Get ready to catch her." I stepped forward and concentrated on the wind that was holding up Storm. Working carefully, trying not to be too obvious about it, I took control of the winds then abruptly stilled them so there was no more air holding her up. My tactic worked; she fell like a rock. Logan raced forward and caught her in his arms, but she refused to lie still. She squirmed in his arms, reaching for the sky.

"No!" she cried.

"Storm, listen to me!" Logan cried, trying to keep her still. Emma stepped forward and pressed her hands to Storm's head. Her eyes closed and all we could do was watch as Emma tried to get through to her. Suddenly Emma's head whipped by with a cry, as though she had been slapped.

"Frost! What's happening?" Logan demanded.

"Someone's invaded her mind," she panted. "Shadow King. He's made her believe that Africa is burning."

"Shit, no wonder…" I murmured. Emma pressed her hands against Storm's head for a moment, then suddenly flew backwards and into Scott's arms. He barely managed to catch her before she hit the ground and carefully he put her down and crouched by her side.

"Can't you stop him?" Logan growled.

"No, he's much too powerful," Emma said. "But she now knows the truth."

Logan turned to Storm, the only one who could stop herself now. "Let it go Storm! It was all a lie!" Storm's eyes suddenly turned from pitch black to a pretty blue. She gasped as her vision of her surroundings cleared and pushed herself out of Logan's arms. Her eyes glowed white and she raised her arms, making the rain stop and the clouds disappear.

"No!" Storm's mouth moved, but her wasn't her voice that spoke. I shivered instinctively knowing that was the voice of the Shadow King. Storm fell back and Logan caught her.

"It's over Shadow King! You used her up, her strength is gone!"

"Then it will be you who finishes her," the Shadow King said, using Storm to reach for Logan's Face and it looked as though some black slime was being transferred from Storm's hands to Logan's face.

"What's happening?" Scott demanded.

"He's exchanging bodies," Emma exclaimed, racing forwards. Suddenly her body fell backwards but this ghostly version of herself continued rushing forwards. And tackled the Shadow King, throwing him away from Logan and Storm. All I can say is that the Shadow King is one ugly piece of work.

Emma and the Shadow King began to duke it out right in front of our eyes. Logan considered the situation carefully, then his lips drew into a thin line and he picked up Storm while Scott carried Emma.

"Can't we do anything to help her?" I demanded, looking at Emma who was getting tossed around like a rag doll.

"We are," Logan said. "Seems to me the Shadow King needs a host, otherwise he would operate without one. We're going to get rid of all the host bodies, hopefully weakening him enough that Emma can beat him. Right now the only thing we can do is get out of here."

I sighed heavily, but followed his lead. Together the three of us retreated to a small alcove and waited. I paced back and forth, impatiently waiting for some sign of life from either woman. Suddenly Storm shifted and slowly sat up. Without saying a word she stood and walked out of the shelter, looking at all the damage she had caused.

"It's not your fault you know," I said quietly. "You thought you were helping."

"I should have known better," she murmured.

"There's no way you could have known," Emma said. I jumped in surprised and whirled around to see the ice queen slowly sitting up. "The Shadow King was extremely strong. Don't blame yourself for his actions."

Hearing the soft pitter patter of feet and turned once more and saw a hole bunch of natives, plus Kitty, Bobby and Hank racing towards us. No words seemed to be spoken, but there were many hugs and smile for everyone. A warm, fuzzy feeling filled me, and I realized for the first time why we did what we did. Not only because we're the only ones who will, but because it felt really good to do it. Seeing all these happy people and knowing that we did a good job, that was a high I could get anywhere else, and it was addicting. Even frosty Emma was smiling.

Once we were back at the mansion, with Storm, the first thing I did was make sure Bobby was ok. He laughed at me and brushed off my concerns, telling me it was nothing, but it made me feel better nonetheless. I also asked after Kitty and we shared some brownies while discussing how nice the native were even though their entire village had been destroyed. It was reassuring to see that not everyone hated and feared us mutants.

It was encouraging to find a place that had what we were fighting for. And I think that was one of the reasons why that trip to Africa was so successful, despite losing the Blackbird. It might have even rivaled the joy of gaining a new X-men.


	5. Thieves Gambit part 1

_Since this section turned out to be so long, I've cut it into two parts. Hope you like what I've done, and if not well…too bad. Still, reviews are desired! I don't care if you want to tell me that it's all crap and I should stop writing, I like to know ho w my readers feel!_

_If you absolutely hate Remy's accent, then I'm sorry. I tried, bu tI'm not very good at them. Give me points for trying folks._

_I do not own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 5: Thieves Gambit part 1**

I grunted again as my body slammed into the mat, the air hissed out of it as I landed and it made an impressive smacking sound of flash on plastic as my bare back slammed into it. I lay there stunned for a moment, trying to get my breath back and wiped at the sweat on my forehead.

"Again," Logan growled.

I groaned but climbed to my feet. Quickly I crouched down a little and spread my feet should width apart. My ready position. I watched Logan through the few hairs that had escaped my ponytail and over my raised fists, ready for his next move.

I hardly got a warning. One moment he was standing there watching me, the next he was down by the floor and sweeping his leg at my feet. Quickly I jumped over his leg then swung my own at his face. He ducked under it and backed away, but I wasn't finished yet. I stepped forward into his personal space, deflected a couple punches he threw my way and pulled the oldest trick in the book: I kicked him in the groin.

He grunted and doubled over just as any normal guy would have done and I quickly put my advantage to good use. I tackled him and grabbed his arm, getting into a hold where I held the greater leverage and that he couldn't break out of without severely hurting himself. Thus pinned to the ground, and me practically sitting on him, Logan grunted and slapped the mat with his other palm. I released him and got to my feet, Logan following a bit more slowly.

"You're good, kid, I'll give you that," Logan said.

I scowled at him sourly. "I won one out of twenty rounds. You think that's good?"

Logan chuckled. "You won one round out of twenty against me with no powers. That's pretty good. Plus a few of those rounds were pretty close. A little more work and you'll be winning about half of our bouts."

"I hope so," I grumbled. "I'm not used to getting my ass kicked so thoroughly."

"Then this was a good experience for you then," Logan said reasonably. "There's always someone better, keeps your ego in place."

I grunted sourly. "We done then?"

He laughed. "Yeah, we're done."

"Good." I walked over to the wall where a water bottle and a towel lay and picked them up. I slung the towel around my shoulders and sucked down the water. It felt like heaven. When I finally came up for air, I felt a bit better, but when I started to walk my legs were shaky from exertion.

"You ok, kid?"

"Oh yeah, just peachy. I'll just go have a shower now."

"Alright, see you later, Taylor."

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered. I stumbled out of the gym and down the hall towards the locker rooms. Unfortunately my eyes were focused on the ground so I wouldn't trip over my own two feet while walking down the hall, so I didn't notice Bobby until I ran right into him. I grunted as I bounced of a solid wall of muscle and fell to the ground.

"Oh, jeez, Taylor, are you ok?"

"No." I placed a hand on my forehead and just lay on the floor. I felt a nudge in the side and cracked open an eye to stare at Bobby who was looking down at me with an amused smirk. "What?" I snapped.

"Need some help up?"

I considered it, then extended my hand. "Yes."

He chuckled and grabbed my hand and heaved me to my feet. My skin crawled as it always did when someone touched my skin, but I ignored it, telling myself that I loved his touch. God, I wanted to love it.

"Thanks."

"Not a problem," he said easily. "We you working with Logan?"

I nodded. "Yeah. He's a beast."

Bobby chuckled. "Yeah, tell me about it. He wiped me on the floor the first time I had a session with him."

I sighed heavily. "Well, at least I won one round."

His eyes widened. "You won a round against _Logan_? On your _first _session with him?"

"Um…yes?"

He whistled. "That's gotta be a record. Someone record this day in history!" HE swept his arms out dramatically and I giggled at him.

"Oh, come on, it's not that big of a deal. I just wish I won more."

Bobby bumped his elbow against my side good-naturedly. "Believe me, that one is amazing. So what are you doing tonight?"

My heart leapt in my throat, and my violet eyes flashed up to his blue ones. Could it be? "Nothing, why?"

"Kitty and I are planning on hitting that new amusement park. Want to come with us?"

My heart fell down to my toes, but I tried to stay up beat. I couldn't let him know how badly he just crushed me with that one simple statement. "Oh, um…did Kitty say to invite me?"

He shrugged, completely oblivious. "No, but I figure, why not? The more the merrier, right?"

I forced the corner of my lips up in a forced smile. "Yeah, but my mom always taught me three's a crowd."

Bobby frowned in confusion. "What?"

He really didn't get how much Kitty and I liked him, did he? "Not tonight Bobby, but thanks for the offer." Kitty deserved Bobby and she didn't flinch every time he touched her. They would be happy together. I hated how much it sounded like I was trying to convince myself.

"Aw, come on, why not?"

"I'm really tired. And besides; amusement parks…not really my thing. Too many people."

"Oh, right." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, and for the first timer I was aware that I was just wearing a sports bra and shorts. All my scars were clearly exposed, and it made me feel extremely vulnerable. Quickly I crossed my arms over my chest in a protective barrier and forced a smile at Bobby.

"Anyways, I need to have a shower. I'll talk to you later, Bobby. Have fun tonight."

"Yeah, you too."

I walked down the hall to the locker rooms, managing to hold back my tears until I reached the locker rooms. But once the heavy door shut behind me, I couldn't hold them back any longer. My body shook with sobs as I stumbled to the lockers and grabbed my towel and shampoo. I turned the water on scalding hot and stepped in, hoping the pounding water would drown out the sound of my tears. I just wanted to be alone for a while, and if someone heard me breaking down in the locker rooms they would want to know why.

So I stood in the shower and cried for what I couldn't have.

Twenty minutes later I came back to my senses and actually started on the cleansing process. I scrubbed my hair with my vanilla scented shampoo, then at my body with my body wash. By the time I was finished I was red all over from my vigorous scrubbing, including my eyes, which had the added bonus of being puffy. It just made my scars stand out just that much more.

I dressed quickly and carelessly in a pair of worn jeans, a black T-shirt with 'I'm a bomb technician, if you see me running try to keep up' scrawled in white, and my favorite black sneakers. I then threw the towels down the laundry chute, stuffed my things in my locker and wandered out to my room. Strangely enough, I was feeling restless and full of pent-up energy. You would think that my work out with Logan would have tired me out, but I guess the talk with Bobby was enough to charge me up again.

I glanced at my watch. 6:30 pm. Arg, I needed to go out.

Quickly I walked to my room grabbed my leather jacket and my cell and headed to the front doors. I was about halfway down the hall suddenly I heard Forge's voice ring out.

"Hay Taylor! Where are you going"

I sighed heavily and turned to look at the older man. "A walk. I'm feeling kind of restless."

He pouted. "Aw, man! What about supper Have you made anything yet"

I scowled, feeling more than slightly irritated as his laziness and dependence. "No, make yourself a sandwich or order something. I can't seriously be the only cook in the house!"

His eyebrows skyrocketed and he looked at me strangely. "Ok, jeez! I'm sorry. Are you ok"

I sighed and rubbed my temples. "Fine, just kind of cranky. I just need to blow off some steam for a while."

He looked at me with concern. "Are you sure that's a good idea" At my irritated glare he quickly continued. "It's just, you tend to lose control when you're highly emotional. Did you not notice the temperature rose a few degrees in here"

I blinked in surprise and realized he was right. I hadn't even noticed.

"I'll be fine Forge. I'll be back before too late, tell Hank and Logan for me."

"Tell me what"

I whirled around and saw Logan striding down the hall towards us. His expression was concern and my irritation at all the males in my life rose a few notches. "I'm going out for a bit. I have my cell, I won't be out too late," I said quickly, wishing I could just go already.

Logan looked at me carefully, and I noticed the sweat beading on his forehead. Wow, I really was losing control. "Ok. Be back by midnight."

I relaxed a bit and smiled at Logan. "Thanks. Will do." Then before there could be any more protests I hurried out the door and walked briskly down the street. Where I was going, I had no idea, but my feet seemed to know so I just let them walk.

Half an hour later I found myself at a nearly deserted park on the other end of the city. I wandered over slowly to one of the wooden benches surrounding the metal play equipment. I sat down heavily and stared mournfully at the people around me.

One little boy in particular caught my eye, and I watched with some interest as the cute kid tried to get on one of the "big kid" swings. He wasn't large he enough to jump one, and he wasn't strong enough to pull himself up. In his last attempt he fell to the ground and burst into loud, wailing tears until his daddy came racing in. My heart clenched and tears pricked my eyes as I watched the young father tenderly pick up his on and gently place him on the swing. The kid's tears stopped immediately and he giggled happily.

The kid had no idea how lucky he was. I just hope it didn't get ruined for him in the future.

Aw, who was I kidding The future sucked.

I wasn't sure how long I sat there and wallowed in self-pity. All I knew was that I nearly burst into tears when a young couple sat down on a bench not far away, looking absolutely adorable as they blushed and whispered in each other's ears. I was shocked about how much I yearned for something like that. Oh, I knew I had a huge crush on Bobby, one that I was trying desperately to get rid of, but I really wanted someone to look at me as though I was the most precious thing in the world.

And it scared me to think that I might never have it. I mean, I might never get over my aversion to being touched, and no guy in his right mind would agree to a relationship where he couldn't touch his girl. It just wasn't going to happen.

Something cold and wet touched my hand, making me scream and jump a foot in the air; conveniently forgetting all my woes. I rubbed my hand and looked up from the ground and stared at the large black dog standing in front of me. He was a large beast, maybe 30 inches at the shoulders, with a long shaggy coat. His ears pointed up in the air and he cocked his long face at me with interest.

"What do you want" I asked him, a large scowl on my face. Instead of receiving a satisfactory answer—not that I was expecting one, I was cranky not crazy—he just opened his mouth in a doggy grin and licked my face exuberantly. I cried out in disgust and pushed him away, but he simply sat down on his haunches and looked at me some more.

I might not have minded so much if it didn't look like he was laughing at me.

"Stupid mutt," I grumbled. "Where are your owners" I looked around at my surroundings and was surprised to realize that it was dark and I was the only person in the park. I frowned and looked at my watch. Only around 10:45, I still had plenty of time to make my curfew.

"So where did you come from" I muttered. I scratched behind the dog's ears for a moment and smiled a bit as he leaned into my touch. I then felt around his neck for some sort of collar, but there wasn't one. So either he was homeless or he slipped his collar. Either one was possible, he seemed like an smart dog. I sighed heavily and stood, up, my arms wrapped tightly around my body. I walked off a few steps and paused when I saw the dog following me.

"I'm not taking you home with me," I said firmly. He just looked up at me with those big, brown puppy eyes and whined slightly. I felt my resolve waver. "Logan will kill me if I bring home a stray," I said in my defense. He whined again. I sighed again. "I suppose I can't stop you if you choose to follow," I muttered.

As if he had understood me, he barked happily and pranced to my side. I walked forward a few more steps when suddenly the dog growled. I froze and looked down at him, but he wasn't looking at me; he was looking back the way we came.

That was when I heard what every girl alone at night is afraid of hearing.

"Hey there girlie, what's your hurry"

Slowly I turned around to see four large, muscular young men standing not far away. I couldn't really see their faces because of the shows of their hoods, but his voice sent chills down my spine. The dog's growling wasn't helping. But I could handle myself, plus I was an X-men. I would never again let someone touch me against my will.

"Away from you," I retorted. They laughed and approached me slowly. I refused to back away; I was in the mood for a good fight.

"Spunky. You know, I like girls with spunk." The one in the middle sidled closer, reaching towards me and I slapped his hand away.

"You touch me, and I will personally make sure you never get a chance to procreate." I paused. "Not to mention my dog will eat you."

They looked down at the growling black dog, but shrugged it off. I guess they figured he was just for show. "You think you can stop us, girl" The one on the left asked. He was an inch or two taller than the others. I imagined he was a bit of a stick figure.

"I don't think I can, I know I can. So scram before you regret it," I warned once more.

They started to approach again. The middle one reached for me again and I quickly pushed his arm to the side and punched him twice in quick succession. I stepped back and crouched in my ready position and blinked as I saw the dog snarling in the skinny one's face. Somehow he had managed to knock the loser down and was perched on his chest. It couldn't have been comfortable, the dog had to weigh at least 65 pounds. The other two guys stumbled back in shock and fear. The middle man was clutching his nose and swearing his head off.

"Ah, Jesus fucking Christ, my nose! The bitch busted my nose!"

"I told you to leave me alone," I said coldly. "Now go before I do something worse. Fang, get off him." Woah, where did that name come from Strangely enough, it seemed to fit, and he listened to me. He gave one last guttural growl and stepped off the man and returned to my side. Quietly we watched the three guys. I didn't really expect them to leave; their ego had been bruised.

They exchanged looks, and I could tell they were pissed. I was expecting their wild charge forward, but before I could do anything something small and glowing purple-pink soared through the air and exploded in their faces. The explosion made me see spots for a few moments, but it knocked my three attackers right off their feet and flying backwards a few feet. I blinked in surprise and nearly jumped out of my skin when a man wearing a long trench coat with metal plates jumped to the ground next to me and held up a card. I stared at him with bewilderment and shock as the card suddenly began to glow, lighting up his rough but handsome features. Even more disturbing was that his eyes glowed red against the black sclera.

"I t'ink de femme told you t' leave 'er be," the man said with a thick Cajun accent.

The three guys simply gawked at the mutant and suddenly one whipped out a gun and pointed it at my rescuer—not that I needed rescuing, I just didn't know what else to call him—the barreling shaking pathetically.

"Stay back, mutie!" the one with the gun cried. "I'll shoot!"

I rolled my eyes. Best to forgo the male ego and just get things done. Quietly I made a grasping gesture next to me and stole the water from the fresh, dewy grass around me, making a perfect circle of dead grass. Before anyone could say anything I snapped my arm in the direction of the gun, and the water whipped through the air, slicing through the gun like a hot knife through butter. The man stared at his gun for a moment then dropped it and slowly backed away, his buddies following him. Once they deemed themselves a safe distance away they turned and ran. They were out of sight within seconds.

The silence that followed was disturbing quiet, and awkward. Slowly I turned to my rescuer—for lack of better word—and stared at him. He returned the favour unabashedly and for a long moment neither of us said anything. I took that moment to study as much as I could in the dark. I could see the stubble on his chin, just a faint outline and maybe a goatee It was hard to say. His hair I figured was brown, and a few inches long and parted down the middle. I had to admit, he was a really good-looking guy, but that didn't mean diddlysquat. But the fact that Fang wasn't growling at him might. Finally I sighed and glared at him.

"I had it under control you know," I snapped. "And who the hell are you?"

He arched an eyebrow at me, and his lips curved into a smirk that was far too attractive for his own good. "De name's Remy LeBeau, and dat's no way t' t'ank your rescuer. A simple t'ank you would suffice, chère."

I glared at him. "I didn't need your help!" I protested. "There was no service done, nothing you did deserved thanking!"

He was enjoying this, I could tell. "No need t' yell, chère. I know you're…frustrated… but dat's no reason t' wake de neighbors." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and I gaped at him. After I wrapped my head around the man's ego—it was rather difficult considering the size—I huffed and actually did something smart. I started to walk away before I reverted to manslaughter. Fang trotted along at my heels.

"Where you goin', chère?" he called, voice playful.

"Away from perverts like you," I snapped over my shoulder.

He chuckled and quickly caught up to me, using his long legs to his advantage. I was mildly pissed when Fang didn't protest. "You know," he said calmly. "It's not very safe for a femme like you t' be walkin' alone at night."

"And I suppose you have a better idea?"

He smirked. "As a matter o' fact." He pointed down the street a ways and I saw a really sexy looking bike. One that even I could appreciate even though I knew next to nothing about bikes. "How about I give you a ride t' wherever you need t' be? I promise I don't bite."

"Hmm, let me think? No." I turned to walk away, but he caught my shoulder with a hand and whirled me around.

"C'mon, chère. Why not?"

I stopped and turned to face him, my finger digging into his chest with each point. "First off, I don't accept rides from strangers. Secondly, I don't accept rides from _annoying_ strangers. And Third, I'm not leaving my dog here all alone!" Ok, Fang wasn't mine, but this guy didn't know that.

"Den allow me t' walk you 'ome."

"Hell no!"

"Why not"

"Because Logan would castrate you, and I don't want that on my conscious!"

He cocked his head at me, and I knew I should be glad that it was too dark to see his expression. If I had been able to see it, I probably wouldn't have been able to resist it. He struck me as the sort of guy that tended to make girls' panties disappear.

"Who's Logan"

I waved a hand dismissively. "My pseudo-guardian and teacher at the school where I live. Now please, do us both a favour and leave me alone!"

He sighed and turned away slightly. "I'm sorry, chère. It's just…" he trailed off for a moment before quickly continuing. "It's been a long time, since I've met someone who doesn't flinch away from me."

I blinked in confusion. I hadn't flinched away from him? Quickly I ran over the last few minutes in my head. He had only touched me once, and it hadn't been my skin, but still. That was remarkable for me. Why hadn't I flinched? And why would he think I would?

"Why would I flinch away?" I asked suspiciously. Did this guy know more about me than he was letting on?

He chuckled mirthlessly. "Look at me, chère. Le Diable Blanc. De White Devil. I'm not exactly de most inconspicuous mutant on de block."

"Are you talking about your ego or about the way you sling those cards around?" Ok, that was a pathetic joke. He just gave me a look, red eyes smoldering and I sighed, feeling extremely guilty. "Look, your eyes are beautiful, don't let anyone tell you otherwise," I said seriously. "And if you're looking for acceptance and whatnot, there are places you can go where mutants are accepted."

"Like Genosha or de Broder'ood? I didn't t'ink you would be one t' endorse dose sort o' places."

I snorted. "Hell no. But there are lots of underground gangs, I used to be part of one. But…there's also the X-men."

He stilled. "You're part o' de X-men?" He seemed genuinely surprised.

"Yes."

We stared at each other in silence before he suddenly spoke. "So which one are 'y? De icy blonde, de perky brunette or de…" his voice trailed off and he seemed to come to a realization.

"Or what?" I snapped, my guilt disappearing in my anger. "The scarred one? Yeah, that's me." My voice was bitter and I was about to turn and walk away when suddenly his hand caught me under my chin and turned me towards him. His fingers scorched my skin, but in a good way; not the unbearable burning sensation I usually felt. He lit up a card in his other hand and seemed to inspect my face; his eyes trailing over my scar in a way that made my stomach do a summersault.

"It's not so bad, chère. In fact, it's kinda sexy. Besides, it's only one."

My anger, dulled by his intoxicating presence roared to life once more. I jerked my face out of his hands and glared at him ferociously. "Only one," I whispered. "Only one? You have no freaking idea what you're talking about! Only one. Do you want to see 'only one'?" I ripped my jacket off my arms and threw it to the ground. Then I pushed up the sleeves of my shirt and showed him the brands on my upper arms, deadly white and slightly raised against my skin. "I do not only have one! I have lots!" I pushed my sleeves down and pulled up the hem of my short, exposing my belly that was crisscrossed with scars of all sizes. "And each fucking one carries the humiliation and pain of knowing that I was too weak to stop them!" I felt the hot tears pouring down my face, but I didn't care. I was too busy staring his Remy's shocked face as he stared at my stomach. "I was with them for only a couple hours and they completely destroyed me," I whispered brokenly. "They don't make me sexy, they're a reminder of my weakness."

I suddenly came to my senses as a particularly sharp wind nipped at my back and raised goosebumps over my skin. I shivered, looked at the ground and quickly pulled my shirt down, more than slightly embarrassed. I practically stripped for a complete stranger; I really should learn to control my temper.

Suddenly my view wasn't only of grass and dirt. A pair of black combat boots appeared and his fingers tenderly pulled my face up to look at him. We stared into each other's eyes for a couple moments and finally we spoke, utterly serious.

"Who?"

I knew what he was asking. "The MRD," I whispered.

"Vraiment?" he asked in surprise. "I didn't t'ink dey had de guts to do somet'ing like dat." I looked away, but I could feel his gaze on me. "Dey were tryin' t' get information off o' you, weren't dey?"

"Yeah," I mumbled.

"But you didn't tell dem."

I finally looked at him with surprise. "How do you know?"

"Because if you did crack, you wouldn't 'ave 'ad dose scars." He leaned a bit close, refusing to allow me to back away. "Listen t' me, chère. Dose scars are not signs o' weakness, chère. Dey're signs o' strength. I don't know many people dat would 'ave stood up t' de MRD long enough t' get what you got. You got guts, chère, and dat more dan anyt'ing else makes you sexy."

Slowly he let go of my chin and tenderly wiped away my tears. Crazy as it sounds, the warmth of his hands felt really good, and I leaned into his touch automatically. A small smile spread over his features and he leaned even closer. My stomach fluttered like crazy and I could stare, as Remy loomed closer until our noses were brushing. My eyes fluttered shut and I just felt a faint brushing of his lips against mine when suddenly something really loud and obnoxious startled me from the haze that had settled over my brain.

I leapt backwards and Remy swore, plunging his hand into one of his pockets and pulling out a cell phone that was blaring at us. He flipped it open with a scowl and put is to his ear.

"Oui?"

I didn't listen to the one-sided conversation. Instead I shakily bent down and grabbed my jacket. It took a lot more effort to put it on than it should have. My hands shook like crazy and my mind was whirling from everything that happened in the last five minutes. I had almost kissed a complete stranger. I didn't know if I should run away, beat the crap out of him, or try to get a real kiss. How did my body not react to him the way it reacted to everyone else? What was so special about him? Frankly it scared me, how I reacted to him. I never responded like that to anyone, before or after the MRD got their hands on me.

Fang whined and thrust his head under my hand as though knowing I needed the distraction. I smiled wearily and scratched him behind the ears. Having a dog really was therapeutic.

"Chère?"

I looked up, startled. I hadn't realized Remy was done his conversation. The phone was gone and so was the glowing card. Still, even though there was no light I could tell he was looking at me with an apologetic smile.

"I need t' go now. I 'ave some business t' take care of. Sure you don't want dat ride?"

I looked at my watch. A little after 11. "No, I'll be alright. A walk will do me some good," I said quietly.

He nodded slowly, and seemed a bit indecisive. Then he sighed. "See you around, chère." Then he turned, his coat billowing behind him, and he walked to his bike. I watched as he climbed on, revved the engine and roared away. Only when he was out of sight did I relax and let go of the breath I hadn't realized I was holding.

"I really am pathetic," I muttered to myself. Fang whined again and licked my hand. I groaned. "Ok, you're right. Enough wallowing. Let's go home."

The walk home wasn't all that great. Not that anything bad happened, but my head was whirling with thoughts that I couldn't even begin to unravel. Still, thankfully for me, it was about quarter to 12 by the time I got home. But that didn't stop Logan from scaring a few years off my life when I opened the door.

"You're early."

I shrieked and jumped a foot in the air. I thumped my hand against the way until I found the lights and glared at Logan after I spotted him leaning against the wall.

"Jeez, Logan. Don't do that!"

He smirked at me, and then frowned when he saw Fang who was sitting by my feet, tongue lolling out of his mouth. "What's this?"

I rolled my eyes. "It's a dog, Logan. You know, furry, four legs, man's best friend, all that jazz?"

"And what is it doing here?" he asked unimpressed.

I looked at him sheepishly. "Um…he followed me home?"

Logan looked at me flatly. "You're not keeping him."

"Aw. Come on, Logan. Why not? He's cute and well trained."

"Too much work. He'll shed, he'll eat a lot, big dogs need a lot of exercise, and we have no place to keep him. You don't know if he was house broken either, or what diseases he might be carrying."

I rolled my eyes. "A simple trip to the vet or down to Hank can solve that problem, I go out for runs every morning anyways, it's easy enough to clean up after dogs, he can stay in my room, and by the way Fang's responded to me before I would say he's very well trained." I looked at Logan, he didn't seem ready to budge. "Oh, come one Logan. Please? If he doesn't work out we can always give him away."

Logan looked at me, then at Fang and then sighed. "Fine," he grumbled. "But just because you already named him, and Ororo will never let me hear the end of it if I at least didn't give it a try."

I beamed at him. "Thank you!" He grunted and rubbed his eyes. For the first time I noticed how tired he looked. "Hey Logan, you ok?" I asked with concern.

He sighed. "The MRD chased a little girl into a crowded area of town, scared her so bad she lost control of her powers and 'put the public in danger'," he said with a snort.

"Is she ok?"

"Yeah, I got to her before the MRD's did, but it was close. And this incident is just going to make the public hate us even more, even though it wasn't her fault."

Fang whined and padded over to Logan, nudging Logan with his nose. Logan smiled and patted Fang's head, and I knew for certain that Fang was worming his way into Logan's heart.

"It really sucks, Logan," Is aid with a heavy sigh. "But there's not much we can do except try to be there and stop them whenever we can."

"I know, I just wish I could help these kids more with their powers like Chuck did. But I can't."

"There's no use wallowing in what you can or can't do. All you can do is do your best."

Logan nodded and sighed. "Yeah." There was a long moment of silence before I stretched and straightened from my position by the wall.

"Well, I'm going to get this guy settled and head to bed. "See you in the morning, Logan."

"You too kid."

I patted my leg as I passed Fang and he obediently followed me out of the main hall. Before going to my room picked up a stack of newspaper from the closet where we stashed them until we got a change to recycle them. I grabbed a few then lead the way to my room, there I laid them out in a corner and looked at Fang sternly.

"Ok, if you need to go, go on the newspaper." I pointed at them firmly. "Or wake me up or something, ok?" I must be crazy for thinking he understood me, but for some reason it seemed like he did. "I'm going to change, make yourself at home." I grabbed my pajamas from off the bed and stepped into the bathroom.

I quickly changed into the grey sweat pants and black tank top and brushed my teeth. I didn't want to leave Fang alone for too long in case he got into something he shouldn't. When I was done about five minutes later, I hurried back into the room and saw, to my chagrin, that Fang had made himself at home on my bed.

Quickly I dumped my clothes in the laundry hamper and stomped over to the bed, putting on my most evil glare. Fang looked at me innocently and those big brown eyes tugged at my soul. I was silent for a long time then sighed. "Fine, as long as you stay on your half," I grumbled.

As though he understood me, Fang wiggled over so he didn't cover the entire bed and I slipped in underneath my covers. I lay on my back, my hand resting on Fang's head and absentmindedly petting him. Darkness over took me almost immediately; my rollercoaster of emotions and meeting Remy LeBeau certainly did a number on me.

When I woke up, I knew right away it was way too early. Not only was it still pitch black outside, but my alarm clock flashed 1:30 am at me. I groaned and wondered why on earth I was awake when I heard Fang's whimper then an odd scratching sound. I sat up slowly and stared at where Fang was pawing at the door and whining pathetically.

"You can't be serious," I mumbled. "I've only slept for an hour and a half!" He whined and scratched the door again. "Fine," I said. "I'm up."

Wearily I stumbled to the door and opened it for Fang. He slipped and stepped down the hall. He halted a few feet away from and looked back expectantly. I groaned and followed him. Since I was dead tired, it took me a lot longer than it should have to realize we weren't heading to the front door.

"Fang, where are you going?" He just gave me a look over his shoulder, one that I was pretty sure normal dogs couldn't pull off. It made me feel rather stupid for questioning him, so instead I just followed silently, trying to figure out what was going on.

That was when I heard the telltale footsteps of someone sneaking around. I went into stealth mode right away, rolling onto the balls of my feet and tiptoeing down the hall to Forge's lab.

"Fang," I hissed. "Go get Logan." Fang looked at me doubtfully but scampered away. I snuck forward a few more inches and peered carefully around the corner to find our intruder.

It was a big fellow. Not fat, but tall, at least six feet. He wore some sort of trench coat, and from the odd glints on it, it would seem as though there were metal plates on them. This was actually beginning to seem rather family actually. It wasn't until the man held up a magenta glowing card that my suspicions were confirmed.

Remy LeBeau.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I demanded roughly, suppressed rage in my voice. I felt an extraordinary amount of satisfaction when Remy jumped and whirled around to face me, obviously startled by my words.

"Chère," he stammered.

"Don't you _chère _me!" I growled. I stalked towards him and jabbed a finger into his chest. "You broke into my home! You can't expect me to be happy! Did you think I wouldn't find out?" The something even worse came to mind. "Was this why you talked me earlier? You were trying to break in? I can't believe I practically invited you to join us!"

"Sh," he said desperately. "Keep your voice down, chère! And no, dat's not why I talked t' you earlier. I talked t' you because I wanted to. I didn't get dis job until after."

"So even after you knew me you decided to steal from my home?"

"Non! Dis isn't about you!"

My eyes flashed dangerously. "Not about me? So I suppose I was just some little fling? Maybe you were hoping to get into my pants?"

Remy groaned and rubbed his eyes with his hand. "Chère…"

"I'm not your chère!" I exploded. "What were you trying to steal anyways?" I looked over his shoulder at the safe that had been blasted open. A small circular case rested within, I interrupted Remy before he had a chance to take it out. Still, I knew what was in that case. "The collar," I hissed. "You were trying to steal the collar that for one, isn't safe to use and two will be used against mutants! What for? Some money?"

"A lot o' money!" he said defensively.

"And that makes things better, does it?" I demanded. I stared at him, and he looked back at me pathetically. Finally I sighed and my anger left, leaving me to deal with the bitter disappointment alone. "So you're just some thief, nothing we did meant anything to you, did it?" I concluded sadly.

His red eyes suddenly fixed on mine, and I felt my heart skip a beat. "Je suis désolé, chère," he said softly. "I didn't mean t' 'urt you. I meant everyt'ing I said in de park. An' everyt'ing I did."

"So why are you doing this?"

He smiled sadly. "Rule number five o' the t'ieves guild: always go t'rough wit' your deals. We all 'ave t' make a livin' some 'ow. I'm just a little bit more dishonest dan ot'ers." He took a few steps forward until we were almost toe-to-toe. I breathed in his intoxicating scent and looked into his eyes.

"Stop playing me, Cajun," I whispered. "I've already been broken."

"But dat's just it, chère," he whispered. "I'm not playin'." He leaned even closer, if that was possible, and I suddenly realized how much I wanted to taste his lips on mine. Our noses brushed gently and we were so close I felt his mouth brush mine when he whispered, "Rule number 5. I'm sorry, chère," and suddenly everything went black.

~ * ~

"Kid, kid, wake up!" I heard Logan's voice, but it was faint as though coming from a long distance. I struggled through the blackness towards it, but did I really want to get up? The darkness did feel really nice…

Suddenly something warm and wet and extremely slobbery ran against my face and I was wide awake.

"Arg! Fang! Get off!" I pushed Fang's large body away from me and blinked at Logan's shirtless figure. "What's going on?"

"We've been robbed," he growled. "I had hoped you could tell me more."

I frowned and suddenly everything came flooding back, including the rage. "Remy LeBeau, I'm going to kill you!" I snarled, jumping to my feet quickly.

"Who?"

I sighed and rubbed a hand over my face. "I ran into a few thugs last night. Nothing I couldn't handle, but this other mutant, Remy LeBeau showed up to help anyways. He flirted with me," I said with a blush. "And then he got a call and had to take off. I came here with Fang and went to bed after we talked. Next thing I know Fang's waking me and dragging me down here where Remy was getting into the safe. I stopped him and yelled at him for a few minutes then he knocked me out somehow and here you are."

"And the collar is gone."

"It is? Crap! I'll get suited up and meet you at the garage."

"You got five minutes, kid, or I'll leave without you."

I rolled my eyes. "Should I get the others?"

"No time. Besides, we should be able to handle it."

I nodded and raced out the still smoking doorway and up to my room. Fang stayed by my side the entire time and watched quietly as I changed into my leather uniform.

"You're not coming with us," I said sternly. "You stay here and watch over the others. Ok?" He huffed, but seemed to understand that no amount of whining on his part would make me change my mind. I patted him on the head quickly then raced to the garage. Logan was already waiting for me on his bike, and extra helmet in hand. I pulled it on and climbed on behind him, clutching his waist desperately as he roared out of the driveway. It was going to be a long night.

**French:**

Femme – woman/lady

Chère – dear (French term of endearment)

Le Diable Blanc – The White Devil (Remy was called this during his childhood because of his eyes)

Vraiment – really

Oui – yes

Je suis désolé – I'm sorry


	6. Thieves Gambit part 2

_Here's the second part. Don't forget to review!_

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated character._

**Chapter 6: Thieves Gambit part 2**

Remy LeBeau didn't know why he was feeling the way he was. On one hand he wanted to see the deal through, like the honourable thief he was. He had a reputation to maintain after all. But on the other hand, he could still see the girl's look of betrayal and anger as she confronted him in that underground lab. He had never felt that way about a girl before, the fact that he was feeling that way was plain disturbing. He didn't chase the girls, the girls chased him! And yet he was practically pudding in her hands. He wanted to hold her, kiss those sweet lips for real, protect her. He had been surprised by how angry he felt when he saw all those scars riddling her back. He had wanted to march up to the MRD and kill every single one of them. And that scared him. He had never felt that way about a girl before. He didn't even know her name!

Slowly he walked to the abandoned building and seriously reconsidered turning around and returning the collar to the X-men. He hated himself for what he did to that girl, he wanted to apologize and maybe get her number. But he couldn't, rule number 5. He had to remember rule number 5.

Before he could change his mind he walked into the building where the dark haired ice queen sat in her little red convertible. Automatically putting a confident swagger in his stepped he walked over to her with an outrageous smirk, though his heart plummeted down to his toes.

"De collar, as promised." He passed over the container that held the collar and waited patiently as she passed over two briefcases full of cash.

"Your fee as promised. And a bonus," she said. Her voice grated on his nerves, but he kept a pleasant smile on his face.

"For?" he asked, though he suspected he already knew the answer.

"Your silence. This transaction never happened." She stepped on the gas and squealed away. He winced as the sound assaulted his ears and turned away from the retreating car.

"Dey never do," he murmured to himself. He slung the briefcases over his shoulder and walked out the side door. He just made a lot of money, so why did he feel so uncomfortable?

~ * ~

"Are you sure he's here?" I whispered to Logan as I used the wind to propel us onto the roof.

"Positive."

I shrugged and followed Logan over the roof of an abandoned warehouse. We slunk over to a small window and looked down as just as a little red car roared away. I spotted Remy walking away with two cases of money over a shoulder and my anger doubled. I wanted to hit him so bad. Silently Logan and I slunk to the side of the roof and watched as Remy jumped over the railing and walked towards the general direction of Logan's bike. He saw it; we were caught. I didn't feel disappointed though, just a rush of adrenaline as I guided us to the ground using a small tornado. We snuck up behind Remy but hesitated a bit as he paused.

"I sense someone is angry, yeah?" He turned around, saw Logan and grinned. "Yeah!"

"The collar, bub. Now!" Logan growled, brandishing his claws in Remy's face.

"I wouldn't go for the head, Logan," I growled as I stepped forward. Remy's smirk faltered when he saw me glaring at him. "It's much to large to anything to cut through."

Logan bared his teeth in a rather feral smile. "Perhaps something a little more precious, hmm?" His claws lowered dramatically and I felt a surprising amount of satisfaction when I saw the slightly alarmed look Remy gave his nether regions.

"It's too late, my friends. It's already been converted into cash." He tried to play cool, but I saw the bead of sweat on his forehead.

Logan growled. "So who has it?"

"I didn't get 'er name. But she may 'ave given me 'er card." He reached into his trench coat and alarm bells went off in my head. "Ah, yes." He pulled out a playing card instead and I realized exactly why instincts were shrieking. "Ah, sorry. It's one o' mine." It began to glow magenta and I was already darting forwards.

I pushed Logan out of the way with a large gust of wind just as Remy flicked it, but unfortunately I didn't move fast enough to get myself out of the way. Time seemed to go in slow motion for a moment as the purple card came soaring in my direction. For some reason I noticed Remy's look of horror as he realized the card was flying towards me, then I was holding my hands in front of my face in an attempt to control the fire that would soon appear.

I succeeded halfway. I didn't get burned, but the force of the explosion was enough to send me flying backwards a few feet. I hit the ground hard and got the air knocked out of me. I could only lay there and wheeze, trying to get my breath back for a few minutes. It was another explosion a couple minutes later that brought me back to reality.

Carefully I staggered to my feet and wobbled over to the fire. I brushed it out of my way carelessly and stumbled into the building just in time to see Remy and Logan going at it. Logan was gracefully leaping out the way of glowing cards and suddenly a lid from a barrel came soaring through the air towards Remy. HE caught it, made it glow and sent it soaring in Logan's direction again. I flinched at the resulting explosion and stared with horror at the fire, with no trace of Logan.

I snarled wordlessly and approached Remy from behind. He turned to face me just in time to receive a fist to the face. He staggered backwards with a cry and stared at me. I was breathing heavily with rage, and I noticed the fire around us rose and fell as I breathed too. It was rather exhilarating to have that much power at my fingertips, and Remy's surprised and fearful expression was rather satisfying.

"You bastard," I snarled."

"Chère, please let me explain," he begged.

"There's nothing to explain! I'm going to—" A heavy hand on my shoulder made me stop and I looked over my shoulder to see Logan. He smiled at me gently then approached Remy. His claws extended with a snikt and Logan coldly pressed them against Remy's throat.

"Who'd you sell the collar to?" Logan growled.

"Rule number one o' de t'ieves guild. Never reveal a client," Remy said stubbornly. The flames around us rose a few inches in response to my barely suppressed rage.

"That collar going to be used against a lot mutants because of you," I snarled. "How can you stand that on your conscious?"

He stared at me for a moment and I could see the regret in his eyes, but then the mask fell in place and he smirked at me. "Easy chère, cash."

"You sold out your kind for a little cash!" Logan roared.

"Absolument non! I sold out my kind for a large amount o' cash. Dere is a difference."

Logan glared at Remy for a moment then plunged his claws into the briefcases. "This cash?" Logan asked, holding it up to see.

"'xactly," Remy murmured. Suddenly Logan reared back and threw the bags into the fire. "Non!" Remy cried. I smirked evilly as Remy turned to me, horror and anger etched on his face. I raised a hand and the fire raged hotter around the briefcases until they were entirely consumed.

"Are you insane?" Remy demanded as he watched his money burn.

"Probably," Logan said. "'Cause I'm going to hire you. Just lead me to your buyer, and I'll pay you double."

"You're some'ow under de impression I know where she is," Remy sneered.

"Rule number two of the thieves guild: always know your customers," Logan said easily.

Remy stared at Logan for a moment then grinned, a light of excitement coming to his eyes. "Well, dat changes t'ings."

"No," I snarled. "We can find her without him, Logan. Let's just leave him here."

Logan shook his head. "I can't trace her scent, not with this fire clogging the air. We need him to find her. Don't let your feelings get in the way of the job, Taylor," he said sternly. I bit my lip and looked away, hating that Logan was right.

"All done?" Remy asked and Logan nodded. "Let's get started den," Remy said.

I grudgingly followed the two men outside and Logan and I followed Remy to another district of seemingly abandoned warehouse, but to one in particular where a guard stood writing on a notepad with a damaged roadblock scattered along the road.

"What is this place?" Logan asked.

"Don't know, but my client come 'ere quite often," Remy easily responded.

"Can we just get this over with?" I demanded stiffly.

Logan nodded. "Right, Taylor, knock out the guard."

"My pleasure." I gestured down to a fist-sized stone that lay at out first and is soared up to our eye level. Then it gestured towards the guard and it soared through the air, hitting the guard directly and the forehead and knocking him out easily. The ground around him then rose up at my bidding and silently carried him over to the bushes where he was deposited without making a sound. Remy whistled.

"I'm impressed, chère. Remind me not t' get on your bad side."

"Too late for that," I grumbled and led the way to the buildings.

"Hey, 'xcuse me!" Remy protested as Logan and I hurried across the yard. "Where do you t'ink you're going?"

"Where do you think, genius," I said snidely.

"You 'ired me for my skills, huh" Remy said, stopping Logan with a hand on his shoulder. "Den allow me t' use dem."

"Don't see what's wrong with just slashing my way in there, kicking everyone in there through a wall and taking the collar back."

Remy laughed. "An excellent plan B. But let's start wit' a little more subtle approach, shall we?" He pointed up to the water tower with a ladder leading up close to the roof. Remy raced over there and we reluctantly followed. Logan and I watched as Remy started climbing the water tower then Logan turned to me with and arched eyebrow. I smirked and waved my hands, creating a wind that deposited up gently on the roof while Remy jumped across and fell to his knees. Remy and I had a brief glaring contest while Logan looked on, unimpressed.

"So now what?" he demanded. "Air ducts?"

He chuckled. "On in de world of cinema. In de real world, dey never hold." Instead he crouched by the ground and traced a purple circle on the roof with his finger. The area within the circle also turned purple and suddenly there was a smoking hole. Remy got to his feet and silently offered for one of us to go first. When neither of us budged he shrugged and jumped. Logan followed after and I floated to the ground once he was out of the way.

By the time I was down there, Remy and Logan had dealt with the scientists dressed in funny looking white suits and Remy opened the sliding glass door without breaking any alarms by blowing up the keypad. Quietly we walked over to the railing and looked down where the lade form the car and an older looking man worked.

"Dat's my client," Remy murmured.

I eyed her. "She kind of reminds me of Emma," I said thoughtfully. Logan snorted with amusement and Remy looked slightly put out by being left out of the joke.

"Dat scoundrel, 'owever, I do not know," he said pointing at the man.

Logan straightened and growled. "Name's Bolivar Trask. He's the gadget man behind the MRD." I hissed but Logan continued. "Which means it was Senator Kelly who wanted the collar."

"Ah," Remy said with a smile. "Well, for an added fee I could devise a strategy for stealin' de collar back, den you—"

"Let's just go with mine," Logan interrupted.

"Which is?" Remy questioned.

"Plan B," Logan snarled as he unsheathed his claws and launched himself over the rail.

For the next few moments it was absolute chaos. The three of us fought against Bolivar and Remy's client, trying to get at the collar. The woman got her hands on it and tried to escape to her car, but Remy was there and smirking unabashedly at her.

"I don't t'ink so," he murmured. "Now 'and over dat collar."

"We had a deal," she snarled.

"And now we 'ave a new one. You 'and over dat collar, and I convince my friend t' leave you in one piece. Logan burst out of the crates that she blasted him into and snarled angrily. The girl raised her gun and pointed in threateningly at Remy.

"Get away form my car!" she cried as Remy made it turned purple.

"As you wish," me murmured, bowing as he backed away then burst into a run. Like an idiot the girl ran towards the car just as it exploded. The collar fell out of her hands and I picked it up as I raced by. Quickly I stuffed it down my shirt, making it rather uncomfortable, but I figured it was pretty safe. That is until Trask started shooting little green lasers at me.

I yelped with pain and was launched a few feet away by the force of the gun. I rubbed my head and suddenly four more guns were pointed at me.

"Ah, crap," I murmured. Suddenly they started blasting at me. I pounded on the floor with a fist and the floor rose up to make a nice little wall between me and the guns. I listened to the guns pounding on it, and I knew that they wouldn't last.

"Taylor, pass the collar!" Logan bellowed.

Quickly I pulled out the collar and tossed it in his direction. I breathed a sigh of relief as Trask pointed the guns at Logan who quickly ducked behind a pillar. With the guns pointing the other way I was able to get out of my hiding place and race away. That is, until Trask saw me, and the guns started firing at all three of us. I ducked behind a pillar and flinched as the guns blew part of it away.

I yelped as little bits of debris cut into my skin, and frantically tried to think of a way out of the sticky situation, when suddenly there was a loud boom. I looked up and saw Remy throwing something glowing down a gun's throat making it blow up. Why he was throwing, I wasn't sure, but whatever it was, it was doing the trick. I pitched into help him against the last couple guns, throwing large fireballs and them and they exploded in a nice display of pretty lights. Fighting sure was therapeutic.

I nodded to him across the room then jumped out to help Logan, but he seemed to have everything under control. HE was standing on a large gun and pointing it at Trask's little control room. It exploded magnificently and I grinned. We won!

Then I noticed three sentinels on the prowl. Remy and I exchanged looks and ran away, leading it directly beneath Logan and his gun. Logan didn't hesitate to cut off the gun and let it fall on the sentinel, leaving only two more to be dealt with. I veered to the side to deal with one on the left while Logan raced to the right. Remy looked torn between which one to go to.

"Go help Logan, I've got his guy covered!" I called to him and flames appeared on my fists. I didn't waste time to see if he did as I said, I just raced towards mine. I threw a few fire balls, effectively exploding a few of the guns, but it just made more appear and continued shooting at me. I quickly ducked out of the way and hid behind a pillar. But as before ,it wasn't holding up very well. I jumped out and threw a couple boulders at it, racing to the next pillar over, but a gun got me. It must have been something like a taser because all I could do was writhe on the ground in torture as I felt an electrical charge course through my body.

Then it was over, but my body still wasn't working right. The sentinel approached me, and I dragged my body behind the pillar as fast as I could and curled up in a ball to avoid getting hit again.

I looked over to where Remy and Logan were trapped by their own sentinel. They seemed to be waiting, or arguing. Suddenly Remy shook his head and walked over to the wall, under the safety of his pillar and blew up a section of the wall. Then he calmly climbed out and started walking away. A few tears leaked down my cheeks as I realized Remy was going to leave us here. He really didn't care.

Then pain hit me again. I screamed and tried to curl up in a smaller ball, but the pain didn't go away for a few more seconds, and then in lingered like a really bad cold. My muscles spasmed like crazy, and I knew I would have next to no control over my body for the next few moments. I cheered myself for a moment with the though that things couldn't get any worse. But then it did.

The pillar that had been protecting me fairly well suddenly disappeared and the sentinel was looming over me. I stared at it with horror, certain that my death was near. I couldn't control my body enough to do anything to defend myself; I was helpless. I squeezed my eyes shut and waited for the pain that was about to come, but it never did. Instead there was a loud explosion and I opened my eyes to see Remy squaring off against my sentinel, blowing it to smithereens. Logan was attacking the last sentinel and making a quick job of it.

He came back, I realized dazedly. Remy actually came back, but why?

"Chère! Chère, stay wit' me." Remy's face appeared in my line of view, worry and fear churning in his eyes.

"Remy," I whispered, my voice hoarse from screaming. My heart spasmed and I gasped with pain and pain turned my world white for a moment. My senses were completely dead for an instant and I seemed to float on air, drifting slowly away. It felt so nice, and for an instant I almost let it take me away from my fear and pain, but something held me back. I wasn't ready to move on just yet. With that realization, my sensed cleared and Remy's frightened face appeared.

"Chère, stay wit' me! Don't die on me, chère. Ain't your time."

Slowly I forced the corner of my lips up in a smile. For a moment, I allowed myself to actually look at him and I saw everything I had missed before. The faint scars from childhood adventures, the fine lines at the corners of his eyes, his sexy auburn hair falling into his eyes, the old pain hidden away behind the mask that was slowly building up like the pressure in a pop can. He never looked more beautiful.

I opened my mouth o tell him so—I must have hit my head really hard at some point—but then I saw something that made my heart stop. Remy's sentinel wasn't completely down for the count. Shakily it raised its tail one last time and aimed it's gun directly at Remy's back.

"No!" I screeched, and for an instant I felt the strength pour back into my limbs. Swiftly I flipped Remy over so I was on top, my back facing the sentinel. Remy's eyes were wide with shock and I had time to regret not properly kissing him when I had the chance when pain ripped across my body, burning like hell. I screamed, my vocal chords protesting madly and then everything went dark.

~ * ~

Some people might say that waking up to a blaring alarm clock is the worst thing in the world. Well, those people haven't woken up to the incessant beeping of a heart monitor. Let me tell you, that is a lot worse.

First off, it is continuous, it won't eventually shut off nor can you press a little button and make it shut up. In fact, if it does happen to stop, you have more thing stop worry about than just your sleep being interrupted. Second, as you grow more irritated, your heartbeat quickens and so does the beeping until you are ready to chuck the thing out a window. And thirdly, a heart monitor means you're in the hospital, which is never a nice thing to wake up to.

Still, when it happens, there's nothing you can do except open your eyes and hope that there is someone around who will at least turn the volume down. As it so happens, I was in luck, Hank was in the room doing whatever it was doctors did while their patient was sleeping.

"I don't suppose you could make that thing shut up, could you?" I asked hopefully.

Hank's head whipped around and he beamed at me, relief making his eyes shine. "Oh, Taylor. You're awake!"

I grunted sourly. "With a major headache."

"Oh, sorry. I'll get you some ibuprofen."

"Thanks," I murmured, watching as the large blue man hurried over to one of the cupboards. "So how long have I been out?"

"Well, let's see." He wandered over to my bed and passed me two tablets and a cup of water. I threw them both back as Hank spoke. "Hank and Mr. LeBeau brought you back early yesterday morning, and it is now nearly suppertime. So almost two days?"

I nodded slowly. "How bad am I?"

Hank smiled reassuringly. "Considering everything you went through, not much. Most of it was just the after effects of getting shot by those lasers. From what I could tell, they had an extra little punch in them that allowed them to stay in one's system for a while, handicapping the mutant until it could get apprehended I suppose," he mused. "Still, the after effects are minimal and should be completely out of your system by now. I want to keep you overnight for observation, of course, but tomorrow night you should be able to sleep in your own bed."

I smiled at him. "Thanks, Doc."

"It was my pleasure, Taylor."

There was a long pause between us as Hank looked at a few of the machines around my bed and scribbled notes down on the clipboard. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, but I found myself shifting awkwardly in the bed, trying to work up the courage to ask the question that was really bothering me.

"Hank?"

"Yes, my dear?"

"Um…so, what happened to Remy?"

Hank looked at me carefully, a knowing smile on his lips. I scowled at him warningly and his smile widened. "He had to leave yesterday evening, he had some business to take care of. However, he did leave me this to give to you." He pulled out a crisp white envelope and passed it to me. I gripped it eagerly, hardly even noticing Hank silently leaving the room. I eagerly tore open the envelope and unfolded the thick white paper within, eyes already skimming the page.

_Chère,_

_If you're reading this, then you've finally woken up and the good doctor kept his promise despite Wolvie's threats of disembowelment. I don't think he likes me much, though I can't imagine why._

_But I digress. I'm writing this letter, chère, because I think we need to get some issues cleared up. I know I don't exactly have the best track record with you, but please, hear me out._

_First off, I'm sorry for breaking into your home and stealing the collar. It was a low blow, and even I don't know why I accepted the job. Maybe it was the challenge, habit, or maybe it was the chance to see you again. I don't know, but I'm sorry for betraying your trust._

_Secondly, I don't know how much you remember of that night—or morning, whatever way you think about it—but I think I should clarify what happened. Wolvie and I were cornered by that one sentinel, and he asked me to blow it up. I didn't. Instead I walked away from the problem and left him and you behind. To me, the entire situation was too complicated to deal with anymore, I was emotionally involved and that is something I've been trained to avoid like the plague. I was ready to walk away and not look back, but then I heard you scream, and I found myself turning around and running to your side. I just couldn't leave you. And that leads me to my next point._

_I don't know how you feel about me right now, chère, and I don't know how I feel about you. But I do know that you're different from all the other girls I've met. I never would have ignored all reason to simply stand by a girl's side and protect her before; but I did for you. _

_These new feelings I have, they're like nothing I've ever experienced before. Honestly, it's frightening, but thrilling at the same time. I think…no, I know I want to explore these feelings and see where they lead, but now is not the time. I still have some business to take care of; things I don't want you involved in; and I don't think the X-men are ready to deal with someone like me just yet._

_Especially after what I've done._

_But I promise you this: I'll be back. I'm not asking you to wait for me—ok, yes I am—but please chère, don't forget this old Cajun. He may not be worthy of someone like you, but he's trying anyways._

_Remy LeBeau_

I slowly folded up the paper and wiped the few stray tears away. He was gone, but there was hope. Maybe I wouldn't be alone for the rest of my life after all.

I picked up the envelope again and frowned when I heard something shift in the sac. I reached in again and pulled out a single purple playing card. Frowning, I flipped it over and my heart nearly melted. It was a singe ace of spades, and scrawled over the face were the words:

_Je t'aime, ma chère._

**French:**

Chère – dear (French term of endearment)

Absolument non! – Absolutely not!

Non – no

Je t'aime, ma chère. – I love you, my dear


	7. XCalibre

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 7: X-Calibre**

"I can't believe you guys talked me into this," Bobby whined pathetically as we walked down the street. Kitty and I exchanged amused looks while Fang trotted on ahead, sniffing at everything he came across. His leash was slack against his collar; somehow he knew just how far he could move ahead of us without straining his restraints.

"You're far too lazy for your own good," I said with a teasing smirk. "Besides, it wasn't as if you were doing something productive."

"Productivity is relative!"

"Somehow I don't think playing Halo counts as anyone's idea of being productive," Kitty said. "Taking your dog to the vet, on the other hand, is."

"But why does it take three of us to take one dog to the vet?" Kitty and I gave him a look and he raised his hands in surrender. "Ok, fine! I'll stop arguing now!"

"Good," I said smugly. "Then you won't argue when I volunteer you to pay the bill."

Bobby gaped and my, looking remarkably like a cod fish. "B-b-but, that's not fair!" he wailed.

"No one ever said life was fair."

Bobby turned to Kitty for support, pouting outrageously. "You won't make me pay, will you?"

She looked at him, and I sighed heavily. I knew that look. That was the kind of look I got when I caved under Fang's demands. The kind of look where your will just crumbles and you can't help but give in.

"Of course not, Bobby," Kitty said with a small blush. "We're just having fun with you."

"You make playing with your head too easy," I interjected. Bobby opened his mouth to argue, but I quickly interrupted. "So, anyways, this is your last chance to place your bets. Want to rethink your decision?"

Bobby shook his head stubbornly. "No way. Fang is definitely mostly German Shepherd."

Kitty rolled her eyes. "You're just saying that because your neighbor owned a German Shepherd."

"He looks like one too!"

"What breed do you think Fang is, Kitty?" I said quickly, hoping to forestall an argument.

"Well, Hank said he was likely some sort of sheepdog, and by the way he's been herding things I'm inclined to agree. So maybe an Australian Kelpie?"

I quickly pulled out my notepad where I keeping track of all the bets and nodded appreciatively. Whoever won was going to be a lot richer.

"What's your bet, Taylor?" Bobby asked curiously.

I shrugged. "I'm not betting. I'm acting as the unbiased overseer. I make sure everyone plays nice."

He eyed me hopefully. "I don't suppose you take bribes, huh?"

"Nope. And we're here!" We stopped in front of a decently sized building with a nice and neat exterior and cheerful writing and pictures of happy looking animals on the windows. Fang stared up at the place, looking almost apprehensive. I suppose he liked going to the vet as much as much as I enjoyed going to the doctor. Oh well, he'll survive.

I marched forward and pushed open the door. Fang reluctantly followed on his leash and Bobby and Kitty trailed in afterward. Quickly I walked up to the desk and smiled politely at the curly haired receptionist. She smiled back in a friendly manner, her eyes crinkling at the corners and giving her that motherly look.

"Hi, I'm Taylor Adams. I have appointment booked for my dog, Fang."

"Of course, just wait over there and Dr. Carter will be with you in a moment."

I nodded and joined Kitty and Bobby where they were still arguing over their breed choices. I tuned them out and watched Fang absentmindedly. He was eyeing a naked mole rat with curiosity and the owner—a young girl—looked back at Fang apprehensively, as if he was going to leap up and swallow the thing whole. As if; he had way better taste than that.

"Taylor Adams and Fang?"

I was pulled abruptly from my thoughts and I looked at a rather attractive blond man with a bright smile and a white coat. I stood quickly and tugged lightly on the leash. Fang sighed heavily but climbed to his feet and followed my lead as I trailed after the doctor. He led us to a smaller room with a table in the center of the room.

"I'll be right with you," the man said with a friendly grin before walking out the door. Fang looked at the table then looked at me hopefully.

"Don't look at me," I retorted. "I'm not lifting you up there. Climb up yourself." Fang woofed softly then leapt onto the stool then onto the table. He then settled on his haunches and looked around the room with sad brown eyes. I scoffed at him.

"Oh come on, it's not as if I'm getting you neutered."

"I would certainly hope you're not planning on neutering me," a smooth voice replied behind me. I jumped in surprise and whirled to face with the blond man from before. He grinned wickedly at me and I blushed furiously.

"That wasn't very nice," I admonished.

"I'm terribly sorry," he said smoothly. "Next time I'll be sure to knock. Now, what can I do for you today?"

"I just wanted to get Fang vaccinated. I picked him up off the streets—well actually he followed me home—but that's beside the point. I just want to make sure he's healthy and not carrying some disease that we should be aware about."

He nodded. "Alright, I'll just give him a full check up then."

I nodded. "Sounds good."

The doctor was an extremely cheerful person. He chatted to me about different things, music, movies, the weather, even some things to know about how to look after a dog. It was interesting and it didn't take long for him to finish Fang's check up. He gave Fang a shots and then announced him as fit as a fiddle.

"That should about do it. Is there anything else you need?"

"Well, you could settle a bet for me."

He laughed. "I'll do what I can. What is it?"

"We had a bet to see who could guess Fang's breed. Do you know what his breed is?"

Dr. Carter looked at me. "You had a bet to see what breed he is? You guys must have been really bored."

I shrugged. "That's what happens at a boarding school. There are just too many hours that you just don't know how to fill. So, what do you think?" I passed him the list of breeds people had chosen and he read it over quickly. He snorted at one entry and I arched an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Someone guessed a German Shepherd? I'm…" he trailed off.

"Amused?" I suggested.

He laughed. "Yeah, pretty much. But anyways, if I had to guess, I would say he's mostly a Groenendael."

"A what?"

"A Groenendael. It's one of four types of Belgian Shepherd Dogs. They're almost always black, and he just as the physical characteristics of one, though he's a bit large to be a pure breed. So I would say whoever guessed Belgian Shepherd is the closest."

I nodded thoughtfully. "Ok, thank you very much."

"Not a problem. Stop by if you have any problems."

"Ok, thanks, I will. Bye, Dr. Carter." I whistled and Fang jumped off the table and trotted out the door. I followed him and we reached the main lobby quickly. Together Bobby, Kitty and I paid the expenses then walked out.

"So, who won?" Bobby asked excitedly.

"Not saying until we reach the institute."

"Aw, come on!"

"Leave her alone, Bobby, she's right. This way the answer is announced once and it's fair for everyone," Kitty scolded him.

I tuned out their arguing and just enjoyed the sunshine on my face. The warmth felt remarkably good, almost as good as Remy's fingers on my face had felt. I felt the heat rise to my face when I thought about Remy. I hadn't heard from him since that letter I got from Hank a couple weeks ago, but I thought about him frequently. Every night praying that he would come back soon so I could breathe in his intoxicating scent, looking into his gorgeous eyes and—

"Earth to Taylor!" I was jerked out of my thoughts and whipped my head around to face my two amused looking friends. I smiled sheepishly at them, hoping my faint flush could be attributed to the heat.

"Sorry guys, I kinda spaced out for a moment there."

Kitty smirked. "You were thinking about Gambit again, weren't you?"

My blush deepened. "No!"

She laughed. "You so were! I don't blame you though, he's hot." She nodded approvingly. "You have good taste."

"Hey, what about me?" Bobby exclaimed with a pout, a jealous glint in his eye when he looked at Kitty. Oh yeah, he had it bad. Strangely enough, that didn't make me feel sad anymore.

Kitty rolled her eyes. "You're pretty cute too," she said sounding extremely exasperated.

"What! I get 'pretty cute' and Romeo shows up once then ditches and he gets 'hot'? How is that fair?"

"Chill out, Bobby. It's not that big of a deal. Besides, Gambit will be back."

I looked at her curiously. "How do you know?"

She smiled at me. "You should have seen him when he brought you in. He was an absolute mess, refused to leave your side until the day he left. You two looked so cute together!"

I gave her a skeptical glance and looked away. My eye caught sight of a grocery store sign and I halted abruptly.

"Oh crap!"

"What?" Bobby and Kitty asked in unison. They tensed and rolled subtly onto the balls of the feet, looking around them carefully. Looking for any sign of danger.

"I forgot I had to get groceries! You guys go on, I'll meet you there when I'm done." They relaxed and nodded agreeably.

"Alright, See you later, Taylor."

I waved over my shoulder and hurried away down the street, Fang trotting along by my side. A couple blocks later I stopped in front of a modest little grocery store with ads painted to the windows boasting of their sales. I debated for a moment then decided I might as well go in. I tied Fang's leash to a fire hydrant and gave him a stern look.

"Stay here, don't hurt anybody," I ordered. He huffed and lay down on the grey concrete, looking up at me with big brown eyes. I quickly turned away before I could give in to that look and marched into the store.

_Ok,_ I thought to myself as I wandered down the aisles, pushing the metal cart in front of me. _What do we need?_ As I walked I picked up the things I knew we needed. Milk, eggs, cereal, flour, bread, pasta, meat, yogurt, cheese, peanut butter and apples were all placed in the cart, and soon it began to overflow. I nibbled on my lip as I eyed the cart critically.

There was no way I could carry that much food all the way back to the mansion. I would have to call for a ride. I reached into my purse for my cell, and froze when it wasn't in its usual pocket. Frantically I felt around for it, but it wasn't to be found. Clenching and unclenching my fists I tried to remember where it was. I had put it in the charger last night, took it out this morning…and left it on my bedside table.

Damn.

Now what?

I sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of my nose. Ok, I could either borrow some Good Samaritan's cell or try and find a payphone. I looked around me carefully, but there wasn't a payphone to be found, and the people around me were giving me strange looks. It didn't seem likely I would get any help from them.

"Shit," I mumbled.

"Are you ok?"

My head snapped up to find one of the employees looking at me with concern. His shaggy dark brown hair hung into his crystal clear blue eyes. His hands were stuffed into the pockets of his black dress pants and his bright orange sneakers stuck out like a sore thumb in his otherwise professional attire. His name tag with the word 'Ryan' was on upside down. Clearly he had issues with authority, but I thought it was a good testament to his personality.

"Um, not really," I admitted.

His frowned deepened and he took a step closer. He wasn't close enough to be invading my bubble, but it was close enough to be friendly. "What can I do for you?"

I bit my lip. "I don't suppose I could borrow your cell for a moment, could I?" I asked sheepishly. "I walked here and I didn't quite expect to be getting so much stuff so I need a ride." His eyes shifted to my cart as I gestured towards it and his eyebrows shot up.

"Wow, feeding an army?" he joked.

My mouth twisted wryly. "Something like that."

He chuckled and pulled a slim black cell out of his pocket, passing it over easily. "Here you go."

"Thank you so much." I quickly punched in to the number for Bobby's cell and pressed the talk button. It rang agonizingly slowly for my taste and I fidgeted in the silence between the grocery guy and me. Finally the ringing stopped and I heard Bobby's voice.

"Hey?"

"Hey Bobby, it's Taylor. I need a ride. Can you send Logan or Hank with the van to pick me up?"

"How much did you buy?" he asked incredulously.

"A lot."

He laughed. "Yeah, sure. Where are you?"

"I'm at…" I paused as I struggled to remember the name of the store.

"Matthew's Market," Ryan supplied with a helpful grin. I couldn't help but notice his dimple. "1057, 25th Ave."

"Matthew's Market, 1057, 25th Ave," I quickly repeated.

"All right. Hang tight, Taylor."

"Ok, thanks. Bye."

"Bye."

I pressed the end button and snapped the phone shut before passing it back to its owner. "Thank you again."

"Not a problem. So are you ready to get things checked out, or is there anything else you need?"

I snickered. "No, I think I got everything."

"Alright, come on. I'll open this till."

My eyebrows shot up, followed him to the till. "Are you always so accommodating to your customers?" I asked mildly.

"Nope," he admitted easily. "Only to the real pretty ladies." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and I laughed.

"Down, Romeo."

He laughed and started checking and bagging my things as I placed them on the conveyer belt. We were both silent for a while, but then he spoke up again.

"So, do you have a super huge family or something? Because I seriously can't remember anyone buying this much food at once. Ever."

"Kind of. I live at a boarding school. We're all really close over there and have specific areas of expertise. I got elected as the chef and so I'm responsibly for the cooking and grocery shopping."

He whistled. "Sweet. What school is it?"

"Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters."

He gaped at me. "You mean that huge mansion with the iron gate and crazy cameras everywhere?"

I blinked in surprise. "Um…yes?"

He shook his head in amazement. "Wow. Your family must be rich."

"I got in on a scholarship, actually," I fibbed lightly.

"Then you're crazy smart. Wow. I always wondered who lived there, we never see anyone when my buddies and I drive past."

"There aren't a lot of us, and we tend to be very busy."

"Yeah, it must have a very intense program."

I smirked, remembering some of my bouts with Logan and in the danger room. "You have no idea."

The cash register beeped and Ryan looked at it. "That will be $243.73."

I quickly fished a shiny silver credit card that Hank and given me specifically for these purposes and paid for it all.

"Receipt in the bag?"

I nodded as I stuffed the card back in its place. "Yeah, please."

Ryan kindly helped me load everything back in the cart and actually walked me out of the store. It felt kind of odd hanging out with a complete stranger, but I didn't mind. I actually welcomed the company. I didn't know when I was going to be picked up and Ryan's sense of humour lay along the same lines as mine.

It wasn't until Fang barked at me that I remember he was still tied up to the fire hydrant.

"Crap, I'm sorry Fang!" I wailed as I hurried over to his side. He huffed sourly and seemed to glare at me while I untied his leash.

"Who's this?" Ryan asked with amusement as he walked over, dragging along the cart I had abandoned.

"Fang, Ryan; Ryan, Fang," I introduced quickly. Fang sniffed Ryan warily then allowed Ryan to scratch him behind the ears. I figured that was good enough for me. Ryan was officially now good people.

"Nice dog."

I grinned. "Yeah, he followed me home one night and Logan actually let me keep him."

Ryan smirked. "If I followed you home would Logan let you keep me?"

Chuckling, I punched him lightly on the arm. "Get real."

He laughed and opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a very loud and obnoxious honk. I turned and much to my chagrin saw Forge waving eagerly at me from the X-van.

"Who's that?" Ryan asked.

"That's Forge, he's…um…my computer tech professor."

His eyebrows rose. "He looked kinda young."

"He's a genius. Can do anything he wants with technology. A lot of the stuff at the school he invented himself."

"Wow."

I nodded. "Like I said, he's a genius."

"Hey Taylor!" Forge greeted cheerfully as he strode over to us. "Logan sent me to get you because the others went out on a m—" He paused and glanced at Ryan. "Er…business trip. They should be back by tomorrow though."

"Should I be worried that you're driving?" I asked hesitantly as the three of us loaded the groceries in the vehicle.

Forge rolled his eyes. "Aw, come on. I crash Logan's bike once and no one ever lets me forget it!"

Ryan looked between the two of us with amusement. "You goona be ok, Taylor?"

I laughed. "Yeah, of course. See you around."

"Yeah, bye!" He turned and walked back to the store and Forge looked at me speculatively.

"What?" I demanded.

"Forgetting Gambit already?"

I snorted. "Hardly. I just met Ryan. He's little more than an acquaintance, and I don't have any plans to move it any further than the friend stage."

Forge looked at me skeptically as we all piled into the van. "I'm sure he's planning on being more than friends."

I frowned at him. "What makes you think that? He was just being nice and helping me out."

Forge snorted. "Trust me, Taylor. Teenage boys hardly ever help out just to help out. He's probably trying to figure out the best way to worm his way into your heart right now."

I shook my head. "You're dillusional."

He sighed. "Just be careful, ok Taylor? I don't want you getting hurt, and you can't play with people's emotions. You need to decide what and who you want."

I nodded grudgingly. "I know."

"Lovely. Now, where did I put the keys?"

I groaned and slapped my hand against my forehead. It was going to be a long drive.

_Another chapter for you all to enjoy. I hope you like it and please review! Even if you think it's crap I want to know! Reviewers = Good People!_

_Someone mentioned in one of they're reviews that they think that it's highly unlikely that Taylor would have fallen for Remy so fast. And they are absolutely right. So I made Ryan for some competition, because who isn't amused by conflict and male pride and ego?_

_And let's not forget, Remy did leave and do some pretty mean thins to Taylor. Though she may have been pretty swept up in the moment when she met Remy, she'll likely become more level headed once she gets some perspective._

_Cheers!_


	8. Wolverine vs Hulk

**Hey people. Another chapter for you guys, obviously. Sorry about the wait, things are kind of crazy right now. **

**You know the drill. Read. Review. They make me happy and a happy writer means faster updates!**

**Kudos to those of you who have!**

_I do not own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 8: Wolverine vs. Hulk**

I sucked in a deep breath and extended my legs, trying to run faster. My legs shook with effort and my lungs felt like they were on fire. Still I pressed on, my feet pounding a steadying rhythm against the pavement.

_At least the kid got away, _I reflected exhaustedly. Logan and I had stopped to save some kid from the MRD, and now they were on our tail but the kid was long gone. Hopefully somewhere safe.

"Where did you park your bike?" I panted.

"A few blocks from here. Keep these guys occupied and I'll go get it."

I nodded. "Hurry."

Logan grunted and pressed forward, quickly outdistancing me as I started to slow. I glanced over my shoulder and quickly counted vans. There were three of them following me. What was a quick and effective method of getting ride of unwanted vehicles?

Destroy the road, obviously.

I stopped in the middle of the street and whirled to face my pursuers. Quickly I raised my hands parallel to the ground and pushed out with the heels of my hands. The ground seemed to swell and rush towards the vehicles like a cement wave and crashed into the speeding vans, making a couple roll into the buildings and the one in the middle went flying backwards. Smoke rose from the vans and I nodded with satisfaction. That was easier than I though it would be.

Famous last words. I heard the distinct cry of approaching sirens and swore under my breath. Nothing was ever easy, was it? I continued running down the road in the general direction that Logan had run, and quickly met up with him. He pulled a 180 and stopped just long enough for me to hop on before revving the engine and taking off.

I clutched Logan's stomach as though my life depended on it, fighting the wind that threatened to pull me off. Though the speed was exhilarating, the chance of getting shot took away the fun and left my stomach far behind.

"What's the plan?" I bellowed over the wind.

"Try and lose them."

"And if that doesn't work?"

"Fight 'em."

I rolled my eyes, though I knew he couldn't see it. "Fight or flight, huh? It has the advantage of being simple I suppose."

"You have a better idea, kid?"

I glanced over my shoulder and counted five MRD vans chasing us. I carefully loosened my grip on Logan's midriff and extended a hand towards the vans. I was about to do a repeat of my previous performance when something suddenly hit us and we were soaring through the air and getting electrocuted at the same time.

I screamed with shock and writhed as he hit the ground hard. It took a couple moments but suddenly the pain disappeared and Logan stood up, claws extended. I frowned and looked at the ground at the pieces of wire that had ensnared us. MRDs were getting clever.

I quickly jumped to my feet as Logan charged the few MRD soldiers that ran towards us. I didn't join Logan in his barrage, instead staying in the background. My powers worked best from a distance anyways. A small pack of soldiers I sank up to their chins into the ground by turning the viscosity of the concrete into something remarkably like quicksand. I blew a few right back into their van that toppled over with the force. Still more soldiers approached.

Logan and I fought hard and dozens were swept out of play, but it didn't take long for the MRDs to surround us and we paused, back to back. We watched the men warily as they trained their guns on us, and a man with white hair and cool sunglasses approached.

"It's over, mutants," he called. "Make this easy on yourself. Surrender." He removed his sunglasses dramatically and glared at us. I had to fight the urge to laugh at his bigotry.

Logan smirked. "That's funny. I was about to tell you the same thing, bub." I snorted and rolled my eyes. Trash talk was half the fight after all.

Suddenly there was a bright light shining down on us and everyone turned to look as a couple helicopters touched down just a few meters away. Men in black and blue suits marched in sync towards us, taking the place of the MRD soldiers who looked rather ragged compared to these specially trained soldiers.

I glanced up and Logan, trying to judge the situation from the look on his face. He face was stony, neither pleased nor upset so I figured we weren't that badly off. I focused once again on the people around me then settled my gaze on a black man with an eye patch wearing the same suit as the others with a trench coat over top. He sauntered towards with a self-satisfied smirk.

The MRD leader from before drew his gun and hurried forward. "What is this?" he barked. "Who are you people?"

"Your operation's over mutant hunter," the other man said. "Pack up your gear. Get out of here."

I took a moment to marvel at how much scorn and distaste the man put in those two simple sentences. It was so beautiful it could have been art. The MRD's face was also vastly amusing to watch as he tried to protest their involvement with righteous indignation then ran away from Nick Fury and the rest of the SHIELD agents with his tail between his legs. I actually laughed as they all hurried back to their vans and drove away, though I shut up quickly once Logan leveled a look at me.

"Hi, Nick," Logan growled. "Long time so see."

Nick smiled and nodded to each of us. "Logan. Taylor."

I shifted my weight uneasily. How could he know my name? For the first time it hit me that this man could be more dangerous than he appeared, and Logan's wary body language made sense. Still, they seemed to know each other. Perhaps it would be our lucky day.

"What do you want?" Logan demanded.

Instead of answering, Nick turned and started strolling down the street. "Let me buy you two a cup of coffee."

Logan and I exchanged glances, but we followed the taller man to the helicopter. Soon we settled in a modest little diner just out of town, all of us—including the SHIELD agents—crammed in around a booth. A terrified looking waitress served us coffee and hurried away from us. I considered breaking the silence, then decided it would be best if I just kept my mouth shut and watched.

"Don't tell me SHIELD is finally getting itself in the mutant game," Logan's throaty growl broke the silence as he sipped from his steaming mug. His hood was off and outwardly he appeared relaxed, but I knew better. He was as taunt as a bowstring.

"No, that's politics. And trust me, if we ever do get involved, you'd know." Fury leaned forward on his elbow, casually drinking from his cup, but his eye shifted between Logan and I. He was wary, but he also was extremely confident and smug. As though he knew something we didn't.

"That's comforting."

"But right now, I have something you might be able to help me with. An old sparring partner of yours actually, the Hulk."

Logan lowered his mug without drinking from it. Bad sign. I had heard about the Hulk of course, many mutants had, and from what I heard he was monster of a fighter. Hearing that he and Logan used to fight was mildly impressing. Still, anything with the Hulk had to be dangerous.

"He's been spotted in the Canadian Rockies," Fury continued. "Two towns have been destroyed already and he's heading for a third. Won't be long before he reaches the States."

Logan placed his mug on the table with a hollow thunk. "Have fun with that." He rose from the booth and I quickly followed. "Good seeing ya, Nick. Thanks for the coffee." We started to walk away, but Nick's voice stopped us in our tracks.

"Catherine Pryde, Robert Drake, Scott Summers, Ororo Munroe, Henry McCoy, Kurt Wagner, Taylor Adams. Do you need me to keep going? Nice school you build there in Westchester by the way." Logan clenched his fists and stalked back towards Fury, I was right on his heels and no less pissed.

"Information is SHIELD's business Logan, but sometimes it can fall into the wrong hands. The hands of certain mutant-hating senators for instance. And just think, you doing a small favour for me could prevent that." Logan stared at fury then sat down back in his place. I remained standing, leaning against the back of Logan's seat and glaring at Fury.

He ignored me. "SHIELD wants you to deal with the Hulk. Permanently. You do this and the names and location of the X-men stay secret. That's the deal."

Logan leaned forward, muscles tense and quivering with barely suppressed anger. "You know, Fury? One day you and are going to have some serious words."

"I look forward to that," Fury said smugly. He chuckled. "What happened to you Logan? This kind of thing used to be your idea of fun."

Logan didn't reply, instead he turned in his seat to face me. "Go back to the others, let them know I'll be back in a few days."

My glared transferred to him. "If you think for one second I'm going to let you deal with these bastards by yourself, you are sorely mistaken," I said icily. "I'm going with you."

He growled warningly. "Taylor."

I crossed my arms stubbornly. "No. We're a team, Logan. Team mates look out for one another." Logan and I engaged in a staring contest for a couple moments before I finally spoke again. "This is exactly why Rogue won't join," I murmured just so he could hear. "You need to trust us too, Logan."

He looked like I had slapped him. Shock and chagrin danced across his face and he looked away. "This isn't your fight kid," he said quietly. "There's no need to drag you into this."

"He threatened my home too. Don't you think I deserve a chance to fight for it?"

Logan was silent for a long time, then he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fine," he grumbled. I smirked triumphantly and we both turned to Fury.

"So, what now?" I asked.

A few hours later we were flying high above the Canadian Rockies. I pressed my face against the window and looked down at the snow, trees and mountains. It truly was a beautiful place, but we weren't here to admire the scenery, we had a job to do. They let us off a few miles no far from where the last sighting of the Hulk had taken place and then flew away. I followed Logan to the wreckage of a town, some of it was still burning. I looked at some of the damage and uneasily looked at the claw marks. Hulk didn't have claws, did he?

"So what's the plan, I asked impatiently. I had been dying to know, but I had a feeling Logan didn't want Fury to know what he was thinking.

"We're going to find the Hulk or Bruce Banner, or whatever form he is in now and have a nice little heart to heart."

"Bruce Banner?"

"The name of his human form. He's a physicist and the Hulk is like his emotional, impulsive, very strong alter ego. If he gets angry or hurt he turns into the Hulk and pretty much always kills what's threatening him. Banner doesn't have any control over his monster, so it's generally not a good idea to piss him off."

"Oh." I considered this for a moment, but was interrupted a low, throaty growl. I whirled around just as Logan whipped his head up and sniffed the air. "Catch anything?"

"Something's out there, but I don't think it's the Hulk."

"Then who?"

"Or what?" he countered.

I glanced at him and huffed. "Same difference," I muttered. Suddenly there was a loud bellow and we looked around for a moment before looking up at the sky just in time to see a very large green man come soaring towards us. Instinctively I swung my hands towards him sending a hurricane force wind up to meet his arrival. The wind hit him hard and he went soaring backwards into the ruble of one of the buildings.

I smirked and cracked my knuckles, tossing my black and white hair over my shoulders. "Fury was right, this is fun."

"Just wait," Logan warned.

The Hulk stood up and bellowed at us again, the veins on his neck bulging out and spit flying in our faces. I carefully wiped it away and wrinkled my nose.

"His breath stinks," I complained.

Logan rolled his eyes and unsheathed his claws. "Get ready kid, you made him angry." His warning came just in time for the Hulk to charge us. He quickly bashed me out of the way and I had another flying lesson that ended with me meeting Mr. Snowbank. I lay there for a moment, trying to get my breath back. Holy crap he was strong! Slowly I weakly dug myself out of the snow just in time to see Logan sent flying through the air and right into the ground. I winced at the sound and decided it was in everyone's best interest to distract him. And the best way to solve the entire situation would be to calm him down. But how?

"Hay! You!" I interrupted his beating of Logan, something about him remembering Logan. Obviously they didn't have a great history. Hulk turned to me and his beady green eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Yeah, I'm talking to you. Playtime is over; now put Logan down. Gently." I tried to channel my inner mother. Sometimes a mother's touch was the best way to diffuse rage.

"Hulk remember!" he growled. "Stupid man attack Hulk! You attack Hulk!"

"No I didn't," I said as convincingly as I could. "That was the wind. Now put the man down so we can talk."

Hulk huffed and tossed Logan away like a rag doll, lumbering towards me. I stood my ground and watched him carefully. We stared into each other's eyes when Hulk growled.

"Hulk not stupid, you attack Hulk! Hulk sma—" Something a little bigger than my fist landed in Hulk's mouth and Hulk and I both blinked in surprise.

"Taylor, move!" Quickly I did as Logan ordered and leapt out of the way, my bruised ribs protesting just in time for the bomb to explode in Hulk mouth. Logan and I watched as the Hulk shook his head slowly, started to advance then fell to the ground unconscious. Then he shrank, paled, and an almost naked man in his twenties lay in the snow in front of us.

"Well," I said at last. "That was interesting. Was he what you smelled before?"

Logan shook his head. "No, there was something."

I nodded. "Ok, so I suppose that means something else is out there. SHIELD wasn't tell us the whole truth, were they?"

"They never do. Now come on, let's get Banner out of the cold."

After getting Banner in more appropriate clothes, Logan carried Banner and I carried the bag and slowly we made our way to a cave not too far away. We laid Banner down further inside the cave, trying to get him as comfortable as possible and hunkered down ourselves. I made a small fire while Logan started to meditate and I decided to take a little nap. I woke a little while later to Logan's voice.

"Now the Hulk I know just wants to be left alone. Not so much into wrecking towns just for the heck of it."

"Who are you?" That must have been Banner. I didn't opened my eyes or move to indicate I was awake. I was comfortable where I was, for one; and for another I didn't want to interrupt Logan's interrogation.

"And I figure since every word that comes out of Fury's mouth is half a lie, I should get your side of this," Logan continued.

"Do I know you?"

"A part of you does." I couldn't see the look, but I figured they must have communicated somehow because Banner started to explain everything. What he was doing there, how SHIELD was involved, everything. It made me feel sick to the stomach to hear how they treated someone who had helped them, and beyond pissed as well. Still, we knew about a cure now, so it was going to be easier to deal with the monster. Plus with Logan's nose we'd be able to find it from the helicopter wreckage.

"Taylor, time to go."

My eyes snapped open and I glared at Logan. Banner jumped in surprise, obviously he hadn't even noticed me. He looked at me in astonishment as I used the air to float to my feet easily.

"How did you know I was awake?" I demanded.

"The temperature in the cave rose a few degrees when you got angry, and the fire stared to rise and fall to your breaths."

I pursed my lips. "Going to have to work on that. So, we're going to the copter, eh?"

"Yes." Logan passed Banner a pair of socks and boots. "Put these on, we're going to have to run so the thing doesn't get us."

A couple minutes later all three of us were racing out of the cave and towards the helicopter. Logan was in the lead, because he was the only one who knew where to go, Banner was second and I took up the rear to protect our backs and made sure that Banner kept up. He wasn't fairing so well. Despite how incredible his alter ego was, Banner wasn't. At least not in the physical fashion. He was out of shape.

"Come on Banner, you have to keep up," I called to him, gently pressing on his back to urge him on.

"I c-c-c-can't…I can't keep up!" he huffed, slowing further. "Just go, find it!" He came to a stop and I paused next to him.

"Oh no you don't. Come on, it's safer in numbers anyways," I urged.

"The helicopter is just over the next ridge," Logan called. He was a few meters ahead and looking back at us impatiently.

"I keep…seeing…flashes of…the creature," he panted. "The Hulk's memories. All the destruction. The towns. The Hulk was fighting it."

"That's nice, now come on!" I said.

There was a loud growl and we all looked around nervously, trying to find the real monster. Something raced around us quickly, too fast for my eyes to follow, but I could feet the footprints echoing over the earth.

"Aw crud," I muttered.

There was a low growling sound and Logan drew his claws, then suddenly a large white…thing strode out through the trees, breaking some in the process. It charged Logan and knocked him to the ground quickly. It then tried to claw him, but Logan met his attack and sliced off its claws. It looked at its hand in confusion then snarled angrily.

Logan quickly flipped away from the creature and crouched, ready to attack or defend. I stepped forward, ready to help when Banner spoke.

"No, wait! Something's not right. My memories from the Hulk, there's something else. There's more." He paused and his jaw slowly dropped as more creatures like the one that had already attacked us surrounded us. Their fur was darker, but I had a feeling they were just as deadly.

"The creature, the Wendigo, its bite must have infect other people," Banner said in awe.

"That would have been nice to know earlier," I commented snidely. Logan nodded in agreement.

"Alright, new plan. Aether, get Banner to the copter. I'll take care of these."

I looked at him with worry. "Are you sure? I can help."

"No! The important thing is getting the cure. Now go!"

I didn't need to be told twice. Quickly I grabbed Banner's arm and tugged him along with me as I charged towards a couple creatures. With a graceful sweep of my arm I blasted them out of the way with a strong gust of wind. They went soaring through the air, but I didn't stop to see what happened to them. I just concentrated on getting Banner to the copter, ignoring Wolverine's bellows and the angry snarls from the creatures.

"Come on Banner," I growled, pushing him forward. "Move faster!"

"I'm…trying!" He gasped.

I sighed and kept moving. I couldn't see the helicopter anywhere, but Logan said it was close. Where was it?

Suddenly Banner gasped and went tumbling forward, falling down a small slope and rolling away. I rolled my eyes, how typical he would trip over his own feet at a time like this. I hurried forward to his side and helped him up.

"You ok?"

"Yeah, that was close though."

I frowned in confusion, looked down and noticed the piece of extremely sharp metal. Banner narrowly avoided becoming shish kebab. But where had the metal come from in the first place?

"Hey, look!"

I looked up at Banner command and glared when I saw the copter trapped in the trees. "Great," I muttered. "How typical." I was about to start climbing when a loud snarl broke the silence the Wendigo jumped out of the trees.

"Go get the cure," I ordered Banner tersely. "I'll handle this one."

I didn't wait to see if Banner listened to me. I just gathered the snow around me and flung it at the monster. You might wonder how I expected to fight off a monster at least five times my size with some snow, but believe me, anyone will get thrown off balance then you dump a few tones of snow on their head. Snow is heavy stuff. Still, the Wendigo was super strong and after a couple minutes he got up and shook the snow off his body. A menacing growl escaped from between his teeth and I growled right back. Too bad there was a man underneath that monster. I couldn't exactly burn it to a crisp without it being murder.

"Come on, ugly," I snarled. "Let's do this."

It roared and charged at me again. I stomped on the ground and pillar shot up and hit the monster in the stomach, making it go soaring through the air. Before it could recover I piled snow around it once more and turned it to ice. A temporary, makeshift prison. I eyed my handiwork with pride when suddenly Banner's cry got my attention. I whirled around to see two monsters climbing the tree after him while he tried with all his might to reach the copter.

"Dang it," I mumbled and rushed forward. But I didn't get there in time. Banner jumped into the copter just before one flew at him and suddenly the copter came hurtling towards the ground.

"Banner!" I screeched and raced forward to help, but something large and heavy barreled into me and we both went flying. Hot, stinky breath wafted info my face and I quickly used a strong wind to push it off of me while I gagged. I stumbled to my feet as fast as I could and found myself surrounded by five of the creatures.

"Come on, Logan, where are you?"

As though summoned by my prayer, Logan's bellow broke through the air and he managed to push two monsters out of the way with his momentum. Quickly I attacked the last three, froze one to a tree, half-buried another and was about to deal with the last when a loud, animalistic bellow made all of us freeze and turn to the copter. A very large and very green Hulk emerged from the wreckage and tossed it away as if it didn't weigh nearly a thousand pounds. A broken monster was tossed by my feet like a Raggedy Anne doll, and I knew we were all in for some trouble.

As though insulted by the Hulk's impertinence, the monsters charged him and an entirely new and terrifying brawl broke out. With everyone thus occupied, Logan raced to the copter to get the cure, and I decided to make myself useful by guarding his back. The Hulk could hold his own, and in fact was doing an admirable job. It was when most of the monsters were down for the count that I began to worry. What if the Hulk dealt with them all then turned on me, that would not be a pleasant fight.

"Come on Logan, can't you work a little faster?" I demanded impatiently.

"Just give me a moment, kid."

"We might not _have_ a moment!"

"Done!" Logan leapt out of the copter, leveled the dart gun carefully and let out two shots that hit the Wendigo in the chest. I watched anxiously as it crushed the two darts and turned its attention to us. Logan nonchalantly loaded the gun and almost absentmindedly shot two more monsters that charged the Hulk. Show off.

"Hulk remember you!" I jumped at the sudden noise, and turned wide eyed to the green man.

"Crap," Logan muttered. "Taylor, can you handle him while I get the cure to the others?"

I swallowed nervously, but nodded. "Yeah, no problem. Piece of cake."

"Don't let him get his hands on you," he warned before darting away to deal with the others.

"Yeah, because I wouldn't have figured that out on my own," I muttered then cracked my knuckled. Ok, time to get this party started. "Oi, ugly!" I called out to the Hulk who started to follow Logan. His beady little eyes didn't turn to me, so I didn't something astoundingly stupid. I gestured gracefully with my hand and a fist sized stone shot up into the air and hit him on the side of the head. It wasn't hard enough to do any damage, obviously, but it certainly grabbed his attention.

"Yeah, that's right. I'm talking to you. Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"

Mistake number 1. His eyes flashed angrily and he yelled, the basic, primal intimidation tactic. I just smiled condescendingly and cross my arms.

"Is that all you've got?" I scoffed.

Mistake number 2. He charged quickly and I barely had enough time to jump out of the way. Desperately, I tossed a couple boulder at him, and they barely made him flinch. He lumbered towards me once again and I ducked a couple of his strikes then got backhanded into a tree. I saw stars for a few moments, before coughing heavily and staggering to my feet. A large shadow on my body made me look up just in time to see the Hulk about to fall on my head. I screamed and yanked the earth up and around me to make a sort of shield. It cracked ominously when he landed on it, but I wasn't crushed. That is, until he started pounding away on my shield.

I swore and frantically tried to think of a way out of the pickled I found myself it. Surprise would be my greatest weapon, so swiftly I pushed the earth out of the way and threw a large fireball at his head. The Hulk roared and stumbled away from me, clutching his eyes. I watched him warily and out of the corner of my eyes say several of the monsters staggering around the clearing and turning back into humans. The Wendigo was also clutching his head and Logan watched carefully. Figuring he had the situation under control, I knew I had to end my own fight, fast. As so far, the only way I knew to turn the Hulk back into Banner was to knock him unconscious. So quickly I stomped so a large boulder twice my size floated in front of me, and I kicked it as Hulk's head. It hit with a resounding boom, Hulk—already reeling from my fire—swayed on my feet. I watched with bated breath as he finally keeled over and Banner appeared in his place.

"Good job, kid."

I turned to face a ragged looking Logan as he walked slowly in my direction. I smiled wearily and gave him a tight hug; grateful we were still alive.

"Thanks. You too. So what now?"

A few hours later, Fury and the rest of SHIELD arrived and took in their lost soldiers. I stood stoically at Logan's side and glared menacingly at Fury as he sauntered over to us. Banner mimicked my position, but Fury didn't falter.

"Nice job Logan, Taylor. Maybe you two should work for SHIELD full time. You've got some great potential kid." I rolled my eyes, but didn't comment. "You save a lot of innocent lives today," Fury continued.

"Is that what we did?" Logan questioned. "Huh, 'cause the way I see it, all we did was clean up your mess."

"Excuse me?"

"Pretty convenient you had all that data for Banner's cure. And you know right where the monster was. Of course it's pretty easy information to get when you created it all."

"You purposely created that thing?" Banner demanded. Oops, we had forgotten to fill him in earlier. "For what? A super soldier? A monster? You can't control monsters!"

"Don't question us, we had our reasons—"

"Yeah, I'm sure you did," I said flatly. "But them me tell you right now. If you ever use whatever information you have now or may have in the future about the X-men, we will personally make sure everyone knows exactly what you've been up to."

His eyes narrowed. "Is that a threat?"

"It's a warning. I suggest you heed it."

"Yeah, and one more thing," Logan said. Swiftly he turned and punched Banner upside the jaw. We all turned and stared at him as Banner began to morph into the Hulk. "Hulk wanted to thank you too," Logan said with a wolfish grin right before getting tossed into the air and far, far away.

"Holy crap," I muttered. Quickly I raced away from Hulk's fists and used the wind to seep me up into the sky so I could fly overhead and find Logan.

"Men," I muttered under my breath as I skimmed along the trees. Still, I had to admit. It was pretty good poetic justice.


	9. Time Bomb

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men_ or any associated characters.

**Chapter 9: Time Bomb**

I grunted and heaved my body in the air. My arms trembled with the effort to lift my body up in the air in a handstand push up. My abs were killing me trying to keep my balance without falling over. Wolverine was right; this was a killer work out.

"31…32…" I huffed and blinked sweat out of my eyes. "Just…a few…more…"

"Hey Taylor!"

I shrieked, startled by the interruption and feel to the ground with a loud thud. I swore loudly and rubbed my now throbbing butt. Slowly I turned to look at the door and glared at a sheepish looking Bobby. If looks could kill…

"Um…sorry about that," he muttered. "Phone's for you!" Quickly he shoved the cordless white phone into my hands and hurried away, probably hoping I would be distracted long enough not to extract revenge. No such luck. I caught the phone with one hand and blew a heavy gust of wind at his retreating back with the other. He flew out the door and with a resounding bang hit the wall before the metal doors of the gym slid close with a hiss. I smirked when the sound of his moans reached my ears then lifted the phone to my face.

"Hello?"

"Hey Taylor, it's Ryan."

Ah, it was about time grocery boy called me. We hadn't hung out since the week before. "Hey Ryan, what's up?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to hang with me and some of my other friends today."

I frowned in consideration and wiped some of the sweat off my forehead absentmindedly. "What were you guys thinking of doing?"

"Just hanging somewhere. Maybe the mall or the skate park. Maybe my house, I dunno. Whatever we feel like doing. We don't have any set plans."

"Sure, as long as Fang can come. He's getting bored in here."

He laughed. "Yeah sure, the more the merrier. Do you need a ride?"

"Yeah, probably. I can't take Logan's bike if I'm taking Fang too, and I think Hank wants the van to stay here."

"Ok then, I'll meet you at your gates in 15 minutes?"

I shook my head. "No, better make that half an hour at least. I need to have a shower."

"It's nearly one in the afternoon! What were you doing all morning?"

I laughed and got to my feet, my legs wobbling unsteadily under me as I stumbled to the door. "I made breakfast, cleaned the kitchen, helped Forge build a computer, and worked out."

He whistled. "Wow, you're a busy person. Anyways, half and hour then. See you."

"Bye."

I hung up and hobbled as fast as I could down the hall. My muscles had begun to stiffen up because I hadn't stretched, and I was beginning to regret that, but I didn't have any time to spare. Quickly I showered and dressed in a casual pair of jeans and a white wife-beater. My leather jacket went over top with my black sneakers on my feet as I hurried down the hall to the front door.

"Fang? Fang come here!" I called. Pounding feet came from behind me and then a soft black head was under my fingers. I scratched his ears obediently, but continued walking down the hall. "I'm going out with Ryan, want to come?"

He barked happily and wagged his tail, trotting along by my side. I smiled at his puppy-like behaviour and poked my head into the kitchen, hoping to find someone there. I was in luck, Logan was in the room making a large ham sandwich, his adamantium claws slicing through the meat deftly.

"Hey Logan?"

He turned and arched a bushy, black eyebrow at me. "Yeah, kid?"

I wrinkled my nose at the name, but decided to let it slide this once. "I'm going out. I have my cell. I'm bringing Fang with me." I turned to walk away, hoping he wouldn't ask questions, but his voice stopped me, mid step.

"Hold on, come back here." I huffed and stomped back to the kitchen, scowling at him. "Who are you going with?"

"I'm going to hang out with Ryan and some of his friends."

He frowned. "Is he that kid you met at the grocery store a few weeks ago? The one Forge said had a huge crush on you?"

I rolled my eyes. "We're friends. Nothing more, nothing less. I'm not going to do anything stupid."

Logan snorted. "Just being friends with him is kind of stupid. He's a human, Taylor. Chances are, he's not going to react well if he finds out you're a mutant. Besides, Gambit struck me as the jealous sort. You might want to be careful."

I huffed and crossed my arms. "Remy isn't my keeper, he can't control who I'm friends with. Besides, he left, at the moment he has no claim over me. And as for the mutant thing, Ryan doesn't need to know."

He shook his head. "You're playing with fire kid."

Bad pun. He's worse than Bobby. "So you tell the pyrokinetic," I sneered.

He rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. "Since you'd just sneak out anyways, go ahead. Just be careful."

I smiled. "Of course. See you, Logan."

I didn't hear his answer as I raced down the hall and out the door, Fang loping beside me. I was already a few minutes late, so I ran as fast as I could out the door and down the driveway. Logan had thoughtfully opened the gates for me, so I was able to race out to the street and to Ryan's blue old, second-hand care without any problems.

"Hey, Taylor, what's up?" Ryan grinned at me from behind the wheel, his blue eyes dancing cheerfully and brown hair falling into his eyes.

I smiled and opened the door so Fang could climb in before doing so myself. "Not much. Just glad to get away for a while. Bobby's driving me nuts in there."

He laughed. "What did he do this time?"

I rolled my eyes and watched the buildings flash by as we drive a little too fast through town. "Oh, just being his usually annoying self. He made me lose my concentration during my workout and…well, it hurt."

Ryan chuckled. "You work out way too much. You should trying being lazy like a normal teenager. It's lots of fun."

I snorted. "And then I would get fat, what with all the food I eat."

"You? Fat? Never."

I chuckled. "So what's the plan?"

"We're meeting everyone at my house and decide what we want to do from there."

"Ok. Who's all coming?"

"Jason, Brett, Joel and Tiffany."

I looked at him blankly for a second, not knowing a single person, then shrugged. "Ok then." Ryan burst out laughing and ruffled my hair with his free hand. I tensed at his touch, but let it slide. "Anything I should know in advance?"

He considered it thoughtfully, keeping his eyes on the road. "Brett and Tiff are dating, and they tend to greatly enjoy PDA." We grimaced in unison. "Most of the time they're pretty decent, but sometimes they need a reminder they're not the only people in the world. Joel is our bad boy/fighter of the group. I don't mean he starts fights, but he's very protective and doesn't hesitate to get physical if the situation requires it, and he's good at what he does. So don't embarrass him too much if you two get in a fight." He smirked evilly and I chuckled.

"I'll try to keep that in mind."

"Sweet. Now as for Jason…well…he's a bit of an idiot, to be honest. He doesn't think much about his actions, he just goes ahead and jumps. He tends to piss at least one of us off everyday, so try not to get overly offended by his crudeness. Deep down he's a nice guy."

"Hm."

Ryan glanced at me worriedly. "Aw, come on, don't be like that. I've got your back. You'll be fine, I promise."

I smiled. He was such a sweet guy. "I know. So, how much further until your house?"

"It's right here."

He pulled his car onto the driveway of a cheerful, blue bungalow. It was a lot smaller than the mansion that I was used to, and a lot less high-tech; but it was cozy and looked like a home. The yard full of flowers looked gorgeous and made the place looked loved. I couldn't help but stare at it, hardly noticing Fang slipping out the door behind me and closing the door only out of habit.

"It's not nearly as nice as your place, but it's home."

I turned as saw Ryan standing next to me and rubbing the back of his neck self-consciously. I grinned at him. "Are you kidding, I love it. I love the flowers."

"My mom's work. She does gardening as a hobby."

"Cool."

We stared at the house for a moment longer, before Ryan broke the silence. "So, you ready?"

I shook my thoughts away and smiled. "Yeah, let's start this shindig." Fang barked happily in agreement.

Ryan arched an eyebrow at me. "Shindig?"

I rolled my eyes. "I have an odd vocabulary, get used to it."

"Yes ma'am." He saluted me smartly then led the way into the house. It was a very tidy place, and smelled and freshly baked bread. Fang's nose worked overtime to take all the new scents, and I absorbed all the new sights. It was a little bit crowded, but large windows made the rooms look bigger and let in lots of sunlight. I liked it a lot.

"Hello, Ryan. Who's your friend?"

I turned quickly at the new voice and spotted a middle-aged woman with bread dough on her hands standing in the doorway to the kitchen. Her brown hair, the exact shade of Ryan's, was pulled back in a messy ponytail and she dressed comfortably in a pair of worn jeans and a T-shirt.

"Hey Mom," Ryan greeted her with a grin. "This is Taylor and her dog, Fang."

I nodded in a friendly manner. "Nice to meet you, Mrs. Geoffrey."

She grinned. "You too. And please, call me Sarah. Mrs. Geoffrey is my mother-in-law."

I chuckled. "Will do."

"Good." She turned to Ryan. "The rest of the kids are downstairs."

Ryan nodded. "Ok, thanks. Come on Taylor."

I followed him down the stairs to the basement. Fang followed right on my heels and nearly bowled me over in his eagerness to get to the food that we could both smell. Sour cream and onion chips, yum.

The basement was just like the rest of the house; small but tidy and comfortable. Four teenagers sprawled out around the room in front of a decently sized TV, two of which were furiously pressing the buttons of the X-box controls in an effort to blow each other up. The other two weren't so occupied and glanced up as Ryan and I entered and smiled.

The two that acknowledged our presence, Brett and Tiffany I assumed, were cuddled together on a love seat. They were both lean and I assumed fairly tall, while Tiffany had orange hair and hazel eyes while Brett had sandy brown hair and chocolate eyes. The other two who still hadn't noticed us, were an interesting pair. One was pale with white blond hair and dressed like a typical prep school kid. The other had midnight black hair, tanned skin, muscular arms and dressed more like a typical bad boy. That had to be Joel and the pale kid, Jason.

"Hey, guys. Been waiting long?" Ryan asked casually as he collapsed on the sofa behind were Jason and Joel were sitting on the floor.

"About ten minutes," Tiffany said with a fond smile. "And who's this?"

Ryan glanced up at me, and his eyes widened. "Oh, right. Almost forgot." Quickly he jumped to his feet and pressed the power button on the TV, making the screen go blank.

"Hey!" Jason jumped to his feet angrily and glared at Ryan while Joel stared at him calmly. Obviously he realized Ryan had something to say.

"Cut it out, man," Ryan said with a frown. "I brought a guest." He nodded in my direction. "Guys, this is Taylor and her dog, Fang. Taylor, this is Brett and Tiff." He gestured towards the couple who waved at me amiably. "The dark haired one is Joel and the idiot over here is Jason."

I gave them all a general wave and a tentative smile. "Hey."

"What the hell happened to your face?" Jason demanded rudely, squinting at me as though trying to find a message in my scars. Ryan slapped a hand to his forehead in mortification and Tiffany opened her mouth in protest, but my mouth was already moving.

"Funny, I was about to ask you the same thing," I said icily. Jason blinked in surprise then scowled as Ryan broke into a hacking fit to disguise his laughter and the couple sniggered. Joel nodded approvingly and smiled at me for the first time before turning to Ryan.

"I like her. Can we keep her?"

Ryan grinned and sat down the couch, motioning me to do the same. I took the invitation and curled up on one end while Fang—after sniffing everyone thoroughly—settled next to me.

"I love your hair, Taylor," Tiffany commented brightly. "Where to you get it done?"

"Um…a roommate of mine actually. I have no clue how she managed it." I fibbed quickly.

"Cool, you have to introduce me sometime. Maybe she can do mine!"

I tried to smile as naturally as possible. "Maybe. She's kind of shy around strangers though." As though sensing my discomfort, Ryan quickly changed the subject.

"So, what's the plan for today, people?"

"Mall," Tiffany said immediately. "There's a sale at Lululemon and—" She was cut off by loud, protesting groans from every male in the room. Even Fang moaned a bit.

"Please, anything but that!" Ryan proclaimed dramatically. "We'll never survive!"

She glared at him. "Oh come on, it's not that bad. Don't you want to g Taylor?" She turned her large eyes to me, pleading with me to side with her. I fidgeted in my place, feeling very awkward put in the spotlight.

"I'd rather not," I said apologetically.

"Damn straight," Jason muttered. "I'm not going within a mile of the mall with you. Not again."

Tiffany huffed and crossed her arms. "You guys are no fun."

"On the contrary," Joel said smoothly. "We are plenty of fun, which is precisely why we are not going to the mall."

"Hear, hear," Brett muttered, only to get elbowed in the stomach by his girlfriend.

"Fine, where do you guys want to go?" she demanded.

"Skate park," Joel grunted. The other guys nodded in agreement and Tiffany groaned.

"Taylor?" she asked pleadingly.

"Sorry, Tiffany. Sounds like fun. Besides, Fang can run around there."

She groaned but nodded. "Fine, let's go."

Ryan, Brett and Jason whooped while Joel smirked then all four of them were racing up the stairs before Tiffany and I even stood up. We looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"Are they always that enthusiastic?" I asked as I stood.

She nodded. "You have no idea. Even Joel, the most serious of the bunch, is just a little kid at heart. But they are great friends."

"They seem like it. Even if Jason is an idiot."

She grimaced. "Yeah, sorry about that."

I shrugged. "No big deal. I'm used to idiots." I rolled my eyes. "Lord knows, there's enough of them at the Institute."

"Yeah, Ryan said you went to school there. What's it like?" Her eyes took on a dreamy quality. "I bet there are tons of hot guys there."

I shrugged. "There aren't that many students to choose from." Only Bobby in fact…

"That doesn't mean the teachers can't be good eye candy." She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively as we walked up the stairs.

I mentally imagined all the boys at the mansion. The only ones I could imagine being attractive were Scott, Bobby, Logan and maybe Forge, but Bobby was the only one even remotely close to my age. I finally shrugged. "There are a few."

"Just a few. Hmm, sounds like you've got your eye on someone already." She grinned wickedly.

"No!" I protested quickly, too quickly.

Tiffany opened her mouth to call me on my lie, but Brett poked his head down the stairs at us.

"You guys coming or not?"

She sent me a significant look as if to say 'I'll talk to you later' and grinned at her boyfriend. "Of course. Hold your horses."

It turned out that there were too many of us to cram into one car, especially with Fang tagging along, so we took two cars. Whose cars we were going to take became the next question though that wasn't solved as peacefully. But finally, with few exchanged insults and only a small tussle, Tiffany and I managed to get everyone to the park in one piece. And naturally once we were there, the boys forgot their fight and skated together like nothing happened while Tiffany and I relaxed under the shade of an oak tree. Fang divided his time between lying with us and chasing the boys. It was really cute actually.

"I love your dog," Tiffany declared as she watched him run around with a goofy smile on her face.

I smiled too. "He's great, but way too smart for his own good. He can get into whatever his heart desires whether it's the fridge or my underwear drawer."

She laughed. "Oh no, I can hear a story here."

"It was terrible. Bobby wouldn't stop teasing me for days." I scowled heavily. "Then he had the gall to ask where I kept my sexy lingerie because he hadn't seen any before."

Tiffany winced in sympathy. "Ouch. What did you do?"

"I punched him and threatened to tell Logan that Bobby wanted a match."

She frowned. "Who?"

"Logan is…um…like the dean of the school and out gym teacher. Bobby once challenged him to a small match during our defense training course." I smirked. "Bobby couldn't do anything without flinching for almost an entire week afterward."

"Ah, I see. Is he good eye candy?"

"Logan or Bobby?"

"Both."

I shrugged. "Depends what you're into. Logan has the 'tough man' thing going, while Bobby is more like a 'good guy', prep-school guy."

She grinned slyly at me. "And what are you into?"

Remy's image flashed before my eyes. "Bad boy," I blurted without thinking.

"Oh, and who fills this role?"

I blushed furiously and started to admire the lush, green grass at my feet. "No one."

"Aw, come on. You can tell me. I probably don't know him anyways."

"I don't really either."

"That doesn't mean you can't be attracted to them," she said with a grin. "Now out with it."

"I'm not even sure I like the guy!" I protested.

"Then it doesn't really matter then, does it?"

I scowled at her. "Fine, his name is Remy LeBeau," I grumbled.

"Tell me more," she demanded.

"There's not much to tell," I said with a heavy sigh. "I met him at a park and he flirted with me outrageously before…um…" I quickly tried to think of a story that was plausible. "Before he stole my diary."

She gasped and her eyes widened dramatically. "Jerk, did he actually read it?"

"Some. The worst part was I had a lot of photos in there that were really special to me, plus some emergency cash. But he gave everything back a few hours later. Walked straight up to the mansion's front doors to deliver it personally with an apology on his lips." Well, the general idea of the story was true anyways.

"That's so cute!" she gushed. "Do you see him anymore?"

I shook my head. "No, we went out of town for some business, but he said he'd be back. I'm not completely certain it's a good thing."

"Of course it is! He sounds like fairly decent guy, and sweet too."

"Maybe, but—" I was cut off by the annoying ring of my cell. Quickly I dug it out with an apologetic look at Tiffany, and brought the phone up to my ear.

"Speak."

"Where are you?"

"Well, hello to you too."

He growled into the phone. "We don't have the time for this, Taylor. We have a mission. Where are you?"

I immediately smartened up. "Skate park; in the south end. On Kramer Drive."

"We'll be there to pick you up in five minutes." He hung up without saying goodbye.

"What's wrong?" Tiffany asked worriedly as I got to my feet.

"There's a bit of an emergency back at the Institute. Nothing major, but I'm needed back there to help sort it out."

"Do you need a ride?"

"No, they'll be here in a couple minutes. All I need is Fang." I put my fingers to my lips and whistled sharply. Fang stopped chasing Brett and turned his black head in my direction before racing over to my side. The boys all followed after a moment's hesitation.

"What's wrong?" Ryan asked quickly once he was within hearing distance.

"I'm needed back at the mansion. Logan's coming to pick me up, so I just wanted to say bye."

"Ok." Ryan gave me a brief hug and the others gave me a hi five or pounded my fist. "See you later?"

"Of course." A loud honk got our attention, and I rolled my eyes at a furiously waving Bobby. Despite what was sure to be a serious situation, I couldn't help but think how dorky Bobby looked right there. "See you guys later." Then I raced away with Fang loping beside me.

I threw myself into the van behind Fang and Logan got the van moving before I had completely settled in. I eyed the serious faces and accepted my suit from Kitty and all the guys in the van closed their eyes to give me some privacy as I changed. "What's the problem?"

"The Brotherhood stole a mutant from the MRD. We're going to rescue him and send him back."

I froze in the middle of stripping and glared at the back of Logan's head. "What?" I hissed.

"The mutant's dangerous, kid. He literally blows up, there's no controlling him."

"He probably doesn't have the training to properly control himself. Emma could help him, can't she?" I directed my question at her.

Logan shook his head. "No, she can't. Besides, she's the one directing us from Cerebro."

I scowled. "I'm _not_ helping you deliver a mutant back into the MRD's hands! I can't believe you all agreed to this!" I glared accusingly at the others.

"We have to," Logan growled. "If we don't half the mutant population in the world will be wiped out. It's a mission from Charles."

Damn, it was hard to argue with that. Absentmindedly I fingered the long scar over my face. "I don't like it."

Hank's large, furry hand covered my own, and gently pushed it down from my face. "I know, and it's understandable; but it is our best option. And from what intell I've managed to gather, he _wanted_ to be there. He turned himself in so he wouldn't hurt anyone. We're doing everyone a favour by turning him in. They won't hurt him, Taylor. They're too afraid of what he's capable of."

I shook my head. "I still don't like it, but I'll help," I grumbled reluctantly.

"Good," Logan said. "Now get ready."

It was dark by the time we reached the base where the mutant was supposed to be. Kitty phased out of the van before we completely stopped and Logan quickly gathered out to take a look. The rest of us waited patiently for them to come back with their surveillance.

"They're not here," Logan reported as he climbed back into the van and Kitty phased back into the car. "They're at an airport. Emma's picking us up there with the jet."

The switch was made quickly, despite the difficulties it took to convince Fang that he had to stay behind to watch the van, and I quickly fell asleep in one of the chairs. It seemed like I had only shut my eyes for an instant before Storm gently woke me up. Groggily I rubbed my eyes and looked at her questioningly.

"We caught up," she explained.

Sure enough, Bobby was already at work, freezing their engines as I stumbled up to the front. Logan coolly regarded the situation before barking orders.

"Kitty, get ready. You're going to phase down there and grab the mutant. We'll catch you on the other side."

"Got it." Kitty phased partially through the floor of the plant so only her hands were keeping her up, then disappeared. Logan quickly moved the jet below the Brotherhood's and Kitty and a guy with long white hair shook his head quickly, panting fro the free fall and looked at us warily.

"Who are you?" He demanded.

"Hey, calm down," I said soothingly. "I'm Aether and we're the X-men. We're here to help you."

"No one can help me!" He cried. "I need to go back."

Hearing that was like a slap to the face. I could hardly believe anyone would _want_ to be in the hands of the MRD, but that didn't matter. I had a job to do.

"I know. That's what we're going to do."

He looked up at me hopefully. "Really?"

I nodded and swallowed. "Yeah."

He sighed, and relaxed a bit. "Thank you." Suddenly the ship lurched and we all feel to the ground as we started losing altitude fast.

"What happened?" I asked Logan over the whine of the engines, helping Nitro into one of the chairs.

"We got hit. Iceman, Aether, we need a landing strip now."

"On it," we snapped in unison, and hurried towards the front of the jet. With a grunt of effort, we flung our hands out and made the ocean before us freeze into a massive sheet of ice that would support the jet's weight. Sweat poured down my forehead and into my eyes with the effort it took, but we landed mostly uninjured. Bobby and I fell to the ground, gasping for breath and Hank patted our shoulders.

"Very impressive you two. I've never seen you do that before," Hank said approvingly.

"I've been near so much water before," Bobby said with a goofy grin. I chuckled.

"What a rush," I breathed.

Hank laughed then looked towards the back in concern. "I do believe our new friend is a little bit worse for wear, however."

Quickly I snapped my head to the back where the mutant was stumbling out towards the ice with Kitty following a few feet behind.

"Wait!" she called. "Where are you going?"

"I…have to…get away," he mumbled, just barely loud enough for me to hear. We hurried out to his side when he collapsed, electricity crackling over his skin.

"He's in bad shape," Kitty stated.

"Thank you Captain Obvious," I muttered sourly. I was tired and cranky after expending so much energy in such a short amount of time. She glared at me.

"Cut it out you two," Logan ordered. "I'll get him back on board."

"We'll take care of the Brotherhood," Scott volunteered. We all turned to face the approaching plane and rushed towards it just as they jumped out of the plane. The pale man with the beard raised his hands and the ice beneath our feet began to shudder.

"Oh no you don't," I muttered. Quickly I gathered some water from the ocean and with a whipping motion of my hands, smacked him off his feet and into a pile of snow. The other started attacking, but I paid no attention to them as I concentrated on the Tin Man, as I dubbed him. His outfit was made of metal, what can I say?

The Tin Man grunted and rose shakily to his feet and raised his hands to attack, but I was one step ahead of him. Quickly I made a large wave of water wrap around him like a cocoon and froze it. I waited a couple minutes to make sure he would remain immobile then turned as the sound of Rogue's cries for help. The mutant was curled up in a ball, more electricity crackling all over his body and screaming bloody murder.

"Storm, Aether!" Logan shouted.

The weather Witch and I nodded to each other and raised our arms. The wind picked up unnaturally, wrapping around the mutant and lifting him high into the air. I gritted my teeth with effort and urged with wind to go higher, blower harder. It screamed in response and rose to meet my will. I could see the glow surrounding the mutant. He was going to blow soon.

I was right. The explosion nearly blinded me with its brightness, but I stubbornly hung n to my concentration so the mutant wouldn't plummet to his death. When it was over Storm and I slowly lowered the mutant to the ground and Rogue rushed to his side immediately.

"Nitro! Nitro!"

Hmm, so his name was Nitro. Interesting.

He groaned and cracked his eyes open slowly. "Is everyone—"

"They're fine," Rogue said soothingly. "Everyone's fine."

"Ok, now _that_ was close," Quicksilver said with a shiver.

"Yeah, no thanks to you," I shot back with a glare.

"You would have been at Genosha by now and wiped out more than half the island!" Logan continued for me. "We're taking it from here. Got a problem with that?"

Quicksilver looked like he wanted to protest and stared straight into Logan's eyes before looking away. "No," he muttered petulantly.

I watched carefully as Bobby and Hank took Nitro back to the jet and followed them in, everyone on my heels. We settled a semi-unconscious Nitro into a chair and with a few quick repairs to the engine we were on our way. Back that the airport Emma dropped us off then took the jet back to the mansion while the rest of us picked up Fang and drove Nitro back to MRD headquarters. I watched bitterly as Nitro stumbled through the gates and had to look away before I did something really stupid.

"We did what we had to do," Hank said quietly.

"That doesn't make it any better," I snapped. "In a way, it almost makes it worse."

Logan sighed and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. By the look of his face, I knew he agreed with me. "Come on, kid. Let's go home."


	10. Future X

_Another chapter for you all. Spring break is on for me, which means I have plenty of time to write. A bonus for both of us I suppose. Now all you have to do to keep me writing is write those reviews._

_Thanks to all of you who have!_

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters. Nor do I own William Blake's poem 'The Lily'._

**Chapter 10: Future X**

I was wearing a long, elegant, black evening gown that flowed down from its single shoulder strap and draped the rest of my body in a light silky embrace. The top cut down a bit low for my liking and it clung to all my curves, but it wasn't slutty. My long hair was pinned up, but two strands, tipped with its usual silver, framed my face. I felt…different wearing it; confident, sexy, graceful despite how all my scars were revealed. My two inch black mules clicked lightly against the marble floor as I walked, and the dress revealed a slip up the side that ended about mid thigh. I blushed but continued walking, not knowing where I was going; just knowing I had to get there.

I turned a corner and approached large, mahogany double doors and gently turned the golden handle and pushed it open. It was extremely dim inside the room; only two candles on a table in the center of the room lit the way. Tentatively I entered and studied the set up. The table was covered with a crisp white tablecloth, set for two people with porcelain dishes, a floral scent in the air and—I just realized—Jeff Buckley's _Hallelujah_ was playing softly in the background.

Suddenly a warm, calloused hand gently caressed my bare back and I shivered. No of disgust, but of pleasure. Warmth of a large body scorched my skin as the man drew closer, hands gently wrapping around my waist. Hot, smooth lips brushed against my exposed neck and I gasped and tilted my head so he could get easier access. A low chuckled thrummed deep in his chest, and it had to be one of the sexiest sounds I had ever heard.

Slowly I turned in his embrace, so our chests and thighs were pressed together. I looked up from the nice view of his chest and throat to see his face, but instead found a pair of lips on mine and my eyes closed unintentionally. The kiss was long, gentle, sweet and made my heart flutter wildly in my chest. Unconsciously my arms glided over his chest to wrap around his neck and wind a hand in his long hair, deepening the kiss.

After a while we came up for air, my ragged breaths accompanied by his own. Slowly I opened my eyes and found myself staring into a pair of glowing red orbs. Remy grinned down at me and leaned down to press his forehead against mine.

"Je t'aime et je t'aimerai toujours, ma chère," he whispered before pressing his lips against mine once more.

I awoke with a gasp and quickly sat up to get my bearings. I was in my room in the mansion like I should've been. Fang was curled up at the foot of the bed, looking at me with a strange light in his eyes, as though he knew what I had been thinking. Ignoring him, I looked around the room. Nothing was out of place. There were no candles, no fancy dinner, no music, no flowers, n—what the hell?

Slowly I slipped out from beneath my warm covers and approached my desk against the far wall. Right in the center there was a delicate crystal dish with large, elegant swirls etched into its sides. In the dish there was a gorgeous, fresh white water lily floating in water. Its fragrance wafted gently on the air, smelling exactly like the scent from my dream. On the desk next to the dish there was a small note. Slowly I grabbed it and read the elegant writing.

_The modest Rose puts forth a thorn,_

_The humble sheep a threat'ning horn:_

_While the Lily white shall in love delight,_

_Nor a thorn nor a threat stain her beauty bright._

My mind swirled with shock and millions of questions. Who had done this? Why had they done this? How had they gotten in? How much did they spend on this? What was I going to do now? Slowly I placed the note back in its place, gathered some clothes and had a shower. Maybe I was hallucinating and when I got back it would all be gone.

No such luck. When I returned to my room, my wet hair, ramrod straight because of the shower, soaking my black T-shirt. I gnawed on my bottom lip for a moment, then picked up the note and the crystal bowl and went in search of food and Hank.

I found my food first. I placed the flower and note in front of my place at the long wooden table, and stared at it as though simply looking at it would answer all my questions. Instead of that, Bobby and Kitty came in.

Kitty sniffed the air appreciatively. "I smell flowers," she declared with her eyes closed then opened her eyes and grinned at me. "Hey Taylor, what's n—oh." She paused and cocked her head when she saw the lily, Bobby gaping behind her back. "Where'd you get that?"

I shrugged. "That's what I would like to know. I woke up this morning and just found it on my desk along with this note."

"May I look at it?"

"Be my guest."

She reached across the table and scanned it, her expression softening while Bobby poured himself a bowl of cereal. "Aw," she cooed. "That's so sweet."

"Lemme see," Bobby demanded, snatching it from her hands. He read it and scoffed. "That's the cheesiest thing I've ever read."

Kitty glared at him and snatched it back. "It's a love poem, Bobby. Most of them are. It doesn't stop it from being sweet."

"It's probably not even his own poem!"

"It still shows he cares enough to do the research to find the _right_ one. Think about it. There are millions of love poems out there, and he had to choose the perfect one. It's not one that's overly used either, bonus marks."

"Regardless," I said sternly, breaking up their argument. "I don't know who sent it. I doubt it was anyone in the mansion, and I don't know anyone who could have broken in."

"Gambit did," Kitty immediately pointed out.

I shook my head. "He's out of town, remember? And likely has already picked up a new girl toy."

Kitty shook her head stubbornly. "He wouldn't have done that. You never saw him by your side while you were unconscious. He'll be back for you."

I grunted. "In the mean time, I have a mystery to solve. I thought I might go to Hank and see if he could help me profile my Mystery Man. Have fun you guys."

"Good luck," Kitty called and Bobby just grunted. I rolled my eyes, picked up my flower and note, then went in search of Hank.

I found him in the computer room—surprise, surprise—and his eyes practically lit up when he saw the note.

"Hmm, it seems you have a secret admirer," he said slyly.

I rolled my eyes. "Let's not make this anymore embarrassing, shall we?"

He chuckled. "Of course. Now, the poem is one of William Blake's, called 'The Lily'. Blake was a poet and painter from the romantic era, and he was considered to be seminal figure and quite singular in his works."

"So he's not a completely obscure poet. So the Mystery Man doesn't put a lot of effort into his homework, but original enough to come up with something not clichéd."

Hank nodded. "As for the flower, water lilies are often associated with resurrection and enlightenment because of the way they close up at night and open in the mornings. Could be he undergoing radical changes in his life since he met you, and considers you the reason for his rebirth."

"And it's not nearly as clichéd as a rose." I frowned. "Or he somehow knows that lilies are one of my favorite flowers."

"Her certainly seemed to know where to find you," Hank said. "Logan would have smelled it this morning, if a stranger had been prowling the halls in the night."

"So he's clever, knows how to get hard to find information. The blueprints of the mansion wouldn't have been easy to get his hands on."

"Fang probably knew him too, otherwise he would have raised the alarm if a stranger had walked into your room."

I nodded with a frown. "Thing is, I have no idea where Fang has been before he met me. It could still be a complete stranger."

"Possibly. But I would be more inclined to think it is someone we know. Otherwise, how would he know you? I suggest you talk to Logan. Maybe he can get a smell of your admirer in your room."

"Good thinking. Thanks for your help, Hank."

He smiled. "Not a problem, my dear. Good luck."

After a little bit of wandering around, I found Logan walking out of the Professor's chamber. He had a small frown on his face, like he was thinking hard. I smirked.

"Don't hurt yourself." I really couldn't help myself.

He jerked out of his reverie and frowned at me. "What?"

"You're thinking about something. I told you not to hurt yourself."

He rolled his head and swatted my head lightly. "Don't be pert. What do you want?"

"I want you to come to my room and see if you can catch the scent of the guy who left these in my room." I held up my treasure and Logan immediately tensed.

"Someone was in your room and you didn't tell me sooner?" he growled.

I rolled my eyes at his protectiveness. "Chill out, Logan. He left me these in the middle of the night. I wouldn't have even known someone was in the room if these were there. If they had any bad intentions, don't you think they would have acted on them?"

"The fact that someone broke into the mansion again is a cause for concern. Also, if they had bad intentions, we wouldn't have known you were in trouble until it was too late. We're upping the security."

I sighed heavily and followed Logan as we marched down the hall. "Ok, whatever. But can you please see if you can catch his scent?"

"That's where I'm going."

I followed Logan to my room, taking two steps for every one of his. Soon we reached my room and Logan threw open the door, took a deep breath then sneezed violently three times in a row.

"Bless you," I said in surprise. "You ok?"

"Your room stinks," Logan said with a scowl as he covered his nose. I frowned and sniffed the air myself.

"It smells like flowers."

"Overwhelmingly so." Cautiously he lowered his hand and sniffed the air. He frowned then growled. "Clever bastard. He covered his scent with perfume. I can't catch a whiff of his real smell."

"Huh. So he shows an alarming amount of knowledge when it comes to our capabilities. He must know us somehow, or has the resources to get our files. That or he just wanted to mask his scent from Fang or really like perfume and got lucky. So he could be a mutant or a non-mutant."

Logan grunted and quickly exited the room. Hurriedly I placed the flower and the note back on my desk and followed him. "What are you doing?"

"Calling a meeting."

I sighed heavily. "I really don't think this is that big of a deal. Nothing bad happened."

"No, but it could. And it's my responsibility to keep everyone safe. And there's another problem we have to deal with."

My eyebrows rose. "Another mission from the Professor?"

"Kind of. We're acting on my suspicions though."

"Oh."

A few minutes later, everyone was gathered in the kitchen. Logan sat at the head of the table, and the rest of us just chose a chair to sit in. Once everyone was settle and comfortable—Bobby had decided to make a sandwich because he was hungry again—Logan started to speak.

"Alright people. We have two problems. We'll start with the simplest and get it out of the way. First off, tonight we're all going back to Trask's facility to see if we can get any information on something called 'Master Mold'."

I looked at him sharply. "The place where—"

"We went to get the collar back? Yeah. Any questions?" No one spoke. "Good. Second problem, we had an intruder last night."

Scott straightened in his chair, and his brow furrowed above his glasses. "Was something stolen again?"

"Care to explain, Taylor?"

"Why would Taylor have anything to do with this?" Scott demanded.

"The intruder only went in her room," Logan explained.

"But why?"

I flushed under everyone's gaze and glared at Logan. "He left something there."

"What did he leave?" Emma asked with a small smirk. She already knew the answer, and she was enjoying herself fully.

"A flower and a note," I mumbled.

Forge's eyebrows shot up. "Someone left you flowers and a note?"

I glared at him. "Is it surprising someone might want to leave me something?" Ok, I was being more than a little bit sensitive, but I couldn't help myself!

He raised his hands quickly in surrender. "No, no, no. That's not what I meant!"

"So what's the big deal?" Scott asked, relaxing. "So Taylor has a secret admirer. What's the big deal?"

"The problem is that whoever it is knows how to get past our security and knows our powers and how to get around them. He covered his scent so I couldn't identify him. No one sensed anything last night. That's a disaster waiting to happen. So Forge, I want you to start upgrading our security. Emma, Hank and Ororo, go over security tapes and see if you can find anything. Scott, Kitty and Bobby, I want you to take a look over the grounds and see if you can spot a clue as to how he got in. Taylor, continue doing what you've been doing and see if you can figure out who it was by the clues you've gathered already."

"And what are you going to do?" Scott demanded rudely.

"Tracking." Was the only reply we got as Logan stood and left the room. A moment's hesitation later, we all left to do our assigned jobs.

Three hours later, I was no closer to figuring anything out, and ready to do murder. Growling, I left my room where I had been staring at the flower and note, I wandered over to the computer room where Emma, Hank and Ororo were looking at the security tapes.

"Find anything?" Hank and Ororo started at my voice, but Emma just continued reclining in her chair.

"Nothing of great suspicion," she said, barely containing her boredom. "Not that I would expect to find anything. If this intruder was as skilled as Logan suggests, then he would have dodged the security cameras as easily as the other security systems."

I grunted and leaned against the wall. "Maybe, but it's best to be thorough." I glanced at the clock on the wall and frowned. "When are we leaving for the facilities?"

Hank looked up. "Soon. We best gather the others and get ready."

The four of us left the room and split up to find the others. I found Kitty and Bobby arguing about how the intruder got in, under my window. After taking a few minutes to calm them down, I brought them inside, then went to my own room to change. Ten minutes later I was done and walking down to the garage. I leant against the van and waited for the others.

Over the next five minutes, the others trickled until only Forge was left. Logan paced next to the van, his strides short and choppy with irritation. I swear, I could see a vein pulsing under his mask.

"Where is he? I swear if he doesn't get here in the next minute I'll—"

"Do what?" Forge asked curiously. We all looked up, and I bit my lip in an effort not to laugh. He wore his usual blue and yellow outfit, but his face was painted with dark greens and brown like army camouflage and a black Kevlar vest protected his chest. He looked ridiculous.

"What are you wearing?" Logan demanded through gritted teeth.

Forge looked surprised. "I'm trying to blend in. Don't you think it's a good idea?"

I could see Logan's problem. Forge's get up would likely make him more of a target because he stuck out like a sore thumb, but there was no time to change, and Forge likely wouldn't want to in any case.

"Whatever. Everyone get in."

We drove into the city where the facility was found, parked in an alley that was out of sight of the facility and approached cautiously. Ororo did a quick scout of the general area, but came back quickly without anything to report.

"There it is," Logan said. "Trask Industries."

"So are we posing for a painting here Logan, or do you actually have a plan?" Scott demanded.

I smirked. "Light's not good enough for a good painting, so it must be the latter."

Logan ignored us. "Something don't smell right."

"With you I assume that means literally," Emma said softly.

"I'm only catching the scent of two people. There should be dozens."

"We're still going in, right?" Forge asked eagerly.

"Don't make me regret bringing you Forge," Logan growled. "You're here for analysis only. Got it?"

"Yeah, sure. Of course." Forge straightened and thrust his chest out a bit with a small frown on his face as though he was trying to imitate Logan, then broke the façade. "But we're still going in, right?"

Logan sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Future's gotta be easier than this."

He gestured over his shoulder and carefully all of us snuck in after him. Taking cover behind a couple buildings Logan pointed at Kitty and Bobby then at the guards. They nodded and Kitty disappeared into the ground while Bobby snuck closer. The rest of us watched as Kitty appeared out of nowhere in front of the guards, scaring the crap out of them, then Bobby whooshed in and froze them before they could do anything.

"Ta da!" Kitty sang as we approached.

"This is way to easy," Logan muttered.

"I know." I frowned and remembered our fight last time we were here and shivered. "It's creepy."

"You guys are right. Let's do it the hard way," Scott said before blasting open the doors. They fell inward, but no one and nothing was there. We walked in cautiously, but there was no attack, everything was silent.

"When you told us of your…adventures here I pictured it far more populated," Emma commented.

"Trask cleaned house," Logan growled. "Frost, scan the guards' minds. "See what—"

"I already have," Emma interrupted. "They didn't even know the building was empty."

Forge sighed. "I was all geared up and I didn't even get to do anything."

"You should consider yourself lucky. Quiet missions are the best ones," I said. "Now what?" I asked Logan.

"Spread out, see if you can find anything. Meet back here in ten minutes."

The other shrugged and did as he said. Looking at whatever was left, but none of us found anything worthwhile. The upstairs was in the same state, even the h ole Gambit had made when we were here last was still there. Ten minutes later we met back up and walked back to the van.

"Well," I said to Hank as we walked. "That was helpful."

"As Benjamin Franklin once said 'I didn't fail the test, I just found 100 ways to do it wrong'. We know where they aren't, and that's a start."

"I suppose," I murmured skeptically.

Hank smiled sympathetically. "This day hasn't been your best, has it?"

I grimaced. "It's been full of too many questions. I admit, getting the flower and note was nice, but the mystery's been driving me nuts. Not to mention Logan's protectiveness."

"It'll get better," Hank said confidently. "It always does."

I nodded in agreement, but I couldn't help but feel like things were going to get a lot worse before they got better.

**Translations:**

Je t'aime et je t'aimerai toujours, ma chère – I have always loved you, and I always will


	11. Greetings From Genosha

_Ok, this is a lot shorter and rushed than usual, but I have my reasons._

_A) Not a lot actually happens in this episode. Not that Taylor would experience anyways._

_B) It's my birthday, and while I wanted to give you all a present, I didn't want to spend my entire day writing._

_So forgive me, my friends, and make my birthday special by giving me lots and lots of reviews!_

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 11: Greetings from Genosha**

Over the course of the last few days, my mysterious benefactor had—without fail—continued to leave me a gift for me to find in the morning. The gifts ranged from chocolates, to a really nice pair of black, leather, fingerless gloves that looked really expensive. I had given up trying to figure out who was doing these things, and had reluctantly began to accept it—though secretly I enjoyed the pampering. Logan was the exact opposite though. He was beyond furious that this guy had managed to slip past our security every night despite the numerous upgrades.

So I think you'll understand my confusion and annoyance when I woke up and didn't find anything unusual in my room. There was no mysterious gift on my desk, on my bed, on my dresser, or anywhere else as far as I could tell. Grumpily, I stomped over to my CD player and jabbed the play button with a finger and stomped back to my dresser. I waited patiently for the familiar, obnoxious strains of Three Days Grace; only it never came. Instead a mellow guitar tune started plucking, then a deep, rich, woman's voice started singing 'Hallelujah'.

That wasn't my CD.

Slowly I walked over to the CD player and noticed the blue, plastic CD case. Carefully I picked it up and read the listing that had been painstakingly written out on the back of the CD case. There were 20 songs on the disc, all of them love songs from old jazz tunes like 'Fever' to modern rock like 'Your Guardian Angel' by Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Some of them I was familiar with, and others I wasn't, but I was touched by the effort I knew it took to choose all these songs. I smiled, gently placed the case next to the CD player and dressed slowly, enjoying my new CD.

My relaxation was ruined by a loud thumping on my door. I growled, finished tying up my shoes and stalked over to my door. Quickly I yanked it open, not bothering to hide my scowl and glared ferociously at a bright perky Kitty and sulking Bobby.

"Hey Taylor!" Kitty chirped. "How are you?"

"Good," I grunted.

"What did Mr. Wonderful bring today?" Bobby asked grumpily. Sounded like Kitty had been singing Mystery Guy's praises again and Bobby was jealous. How cute.

"A burned CD of love songs."

Kitty cooed. "That's so romantic!"

I allowed my lips to twitch up into a smile. "Yeah, it is. Anyways, what do you two want?"

"We were going down for a danger room session. Want to join us?"

I considered it. "Yeah, sure. Just let me grab an apple from the kitchen and—" I paused as Kitty pulled an apple out from behind her back with a smirk. I rolled my eyes. "Ok, let's go."

The three of us changed quickly in our respective locker rooms—I gobbled down the apple in record time—and soon we were in the danger room, trying to decide which setting we wanted.

"I say we go for the intermediate setting," I voted.

"Naw, it's been a long time since we've been here, and it's our first round. Let's start off easy. Beginner," Bobby said.

Kitty sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. Newbie setting it is." Bobby glared at her, but didn't have enough time to say anything because suddenly we were all getting shot at.

Quickly we jumped out of the way and I frantically tried to dodge the lasers. Bobby didn't bother, he just frantically built himself a shield of ice. That wasn't a bad idea actually. Quickly, during a brief pause in lasers I force a metal strip from the floor up into a makeshift shield. Once it was in place, I took the opportunity to look around. There were two sets of guns, at opposite ends of the room. I turned to Kitty, interrupting her bickering with Bobby.

"Hey, Kitty! Can you two take out those guns while I get the others?"

She nodded. "Absolutely. Come on Bobby."

He sighed with relief. "Finally! A plan!"

I snorted, watched them get underway, then raced towards my own guns. As I raced forward I gathered heat in my hands and soon held a large ball of or flickering, orange flames. With a grunt I heaved it towards the guns and watched with satisfaction it melted the circuits and it shorted out.

"Perfect," I murmured, and turned to see how Bobby and Kitty were making out. Then screamed bloody murder as the wreckage fell on their heads. Unable to move, I simply stared in shock at the smoldering metal then sigh as the pair rolled out. They didn't come apart though when they stopped.

"Um, thanks," Bobby murmured, looking up at Kitty's eyes. She stared back, both of them obviously forgetting all about me.

"No problem."

Ok, so this was a little awkward. Really cute, but awkward. I didn't want to say anything and ruin the moment, but I really didn't feel comfortable staying and watching either. Honestly, I felt like a Peeping Tom. Fortunately, I was saved by the doors sliding open to reveal Warren. The two love birds quickly separated and Kitty beamed at him.

"Angel! Hey, what a surprise. It's good to see you."

"And we weren't doing anything!" Bobby exclaimed. I snorted and walked forward.

"Hey Warren. What's up?" I greeted.

"Is Logan here?" he asked without his usual grin. I frowned. Something had to be wrong.

"No," Kitty said with a small frown. "He's gone."

"I wanted to see if there had been any change in the Professor."

"I can't believe Logan hasn't told you," Kitty said in disbelief. "Come on, we'll take you to the Professor."

The three of them walked down the hall, and I trailed after them. Something didn't seem right, but I had no idea what. Shrugging it off as paranoia from the Mystery Man, I leaned against the wall as Kitty started opening up the Professor's chamber.

"You're not going to believe what's been going on here," Kitty said. "After we got the Professor back—" She was cut off by a loud roar and suddenly Warren was on the floor with a snarling Logan on top. Bobby, Kitty and I all stared in disbelief at the two tousling on the floor.

"Huh. I guess Logan is here after all," Bobby said mildly. I snapped out of my stupor and rolled my eyes.

"Kitty, go get Hank and Storm," I ordered.

"Right." Quickly she ran off through a wall and I turned to Bobby.

"Let's see if we can separate them, but watch Angel carefully. Logan wouldn't attack him for no reason."

"Are you nuts? Getting in the way of Logan when he's in a fight? That's suicide."

"Stop being such a Drama Queen," I scoffed. "Let's get to work."

He sighed heavily and shifted into his ice form. "Fine."

Quickly we hurried after the pair, just in time for Bobby to freeze Logan's arm as he was about to strike. I hurried closer to Angel so I could grab him if something went wrong. Fang appeared from around the corner, blinked and sniffed the air carefully then growled at Angel. Ok, something definitely wasn't right here. I shifted so that I could watch Warren carefully, ready to strike.

"What are you doing?" Bobby demanded. "Angel's one of us!"

With a surprising display of strength, Logan freed his arm and shattered all the ice. I rolled forward onto the balls of my feet, waiting for an indication of what to do and tensed as Logan threw Bobby aside. He leapt in the air again and I was about to intercept when suddenly a red beam pushed Logan into the wall with a huge crash.

"Come on Logan," Scott taunted him. "Give me another reason."

"Stop it you two!" I demanded. "Let's use our grown up voices and talk about this, ok?" Logan growled at my mocking tone and the other approached slowly, but he straightened slightly and did as I suggested.

"It's not Angel, it's a shapeshifter!"

I whirled around to face Warren who was smirking at us all. "What can I say? The nose knows."

Suddenly his form melted into a replica of Storm and she roundhouse kicked the real Storm into Logan and Scott. Hank lunged at her, but was quickly brought down and she started to run, Fang and I on her heels. Thinking quickly, I decided that it was probably best not to burn her to a crisp, so I flung a solid wall of air at her back, knocking her into a wall.

"Fang, get her."

He lunged and landed on her stomach, making her loose any air she had left in her lungs. I hurriedly pulled some metal off the walls to tie her up with, but a loud yelp caught my attention. I turned quickly and moved just in time to avoid a large boot to the face. I tried to blow her away from me again, but she had learned from her previous mistake, and was able to dodge out of the way and launch another attack at me.

She was really good as hand-to-hand combat, and quickly I found myself on the floor about to get knocked out, but I quickly shot flamed at her face. She stumbled away with a small cry of pain, allowing me enough time to get to my feet. I came at her with flaming fists, but she tripped me as I went past and I found myself on the floor once again. Desperately, I tried to roll out of the way, but I was too late. She kicked me in the head, making my world swim and turn dim.

I blinked the stars away, and clumsily tried to get to my feet as I listened to her footsteps pounding further and further away from me, but it was so hard. The world was too fuzzy to see properly, and seemed to be getting darker with every second. The throbbing pain on my head wasn't helping any. After a couple minutes effort, I finally gave up and simply lay on the floor. The alarm ringing in the air made my headache even worse and I whimpered pathetically. Vaguely I wondered if Logan had caught the intruder before I lost consciousness.

~ * ~

It was dark when I finally woke up. I was in the infirmary, the beeping monitors told me that, but there wasn't that usual distinctive smell that usually accompanied it. Instead my nose caught the scent of flowers.

Carefully I turned my head and found myself staring at a huge bouquet of assorted flowers. Despite how dark it was in the room, I could see their different colours and I knew it would be beautiful to look at in daylight. I smiled when my eye caught sight of the small white card amidst the flowers. I reached forward, pulled it out and gasped. It was an ace of hearts, and written on it—in the same elegant script that had accompanied all my other gifts—was:

_Get Well Soon_

I groaned and rubbed my temples with my fingers. Seemed as though I had bigger problems than I had previously thought.

Damn.


	12. Past Discretions

_Sorry it's been so long folks. School was absolutely insane, but now that it's all over and done with, here's a very long awaited chapter, though I apologize for the horribly written Cajun accent. It's the thought that counts, right? Anyways, I hope you like the rest of the chapter, and always I encourage you all to review! For those of you who have done so, here's a batch of homemade virtual cookies!_

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 12: **Past Discretions

All was quiet in the hall, when I cautiously stuck my head out of the kitchen. Everything was quiet and still. I had been hiding out in the kitchen for the past hour, pretending to be busy cleaning so Hank wouldn't recruit me to help restock the library. Bobby and Kitty had been caught and hustled away, but I refused to be added to their numbers. I needed a quiet place to think. I needed to get away for a while.

So now I had to sneak out of the mansion. Not an easy task with so many people living in it, still I had some advantages. Logan was talking to the Professor again. Probably would be a while. Hank was supervising Bobby and Kitty in the library while Forge was in his usual hiding place, the hangar. Fang was out in the yard, doing whatever it is dogs like to do on sunny days. Scott was likely moping around somewhere, and even if he saw me he likely wouldn't stop me from going out. So that left only Emma. She might stop me, she might not. I would have to be careful.

Stealthily, I tiptoed out to the main hall and froze when I saw Emma at the window. She didn't seem to notice me though, absorbed in whatever the view was. I waited a couple moments and she didn't stir. Cautiously I crept towards the door, but she still didn't move. Excellent. I hurried the rest of the way, opened the door quietly and thanked God that the hinges didn't squeak.

Then I was home free.

I raced to the gate, enjoying the exercise and chance to stretch my legs, and slipped through the gate and down the street. Once I felt I was a safe distance away from the mansion, I slowed to a walk and tried to decide where to go. I needed to be someplace relatively quiet where people wouldn't bother me and where the X-men wouldn't think to find me. But where?

Stone's Throw.

I smiled at the tiny little café that had caught my eye. It was squeezed between a large supermarket and a music store, but from what I could see it was comfortable and quiet. Not many customers. Besides, I was feeling a bit hungry.

I strolled in casually, purchased a brownie and hot chocolate and sat down in a cozy little booth in the corner. I sipped at my drink slowly, savouring the taste and doing my best to pretend that there was nothing else in the world besides my food and me. But I could only pretend for so long.

I had some real problems to deal with, and most of the—unfortunately—revolved around my love life. First, was Remy LeBeau. I had honestly thought that he wasn't coming back. Fairly certain anyways. We hadn't gotten off to a good start, and I'd bet the only reason he flirted with me in the first place was because I was an X-man. That he had come back made me suspicious. What could he possible want from me this time? Was he trying to worm his way back into my good graces? Did he enjoy playing with my emotions?

Another part of me was more optimistic. Or naïve. Maybe Remy was genuinely interested. Maybe he really did like me. Maybe he had been telling the truth when he said he hadn't known about his job before coming to rob me. Maybe he cared.

But even if he did, it would never work out. I was an X-man, he was a thief. He was a flirt, I hated being touched. I was old, broken goods. He'd tire of me quickly. Logan didn't like him either. We had enough chaos at the mansion without adding the drama of my love life to the mix. I should pretend I never met him, throw out his gifts and stop his advances.

But I didn't want to.

I wanted to hear his deep voice with that beautiful Cajun accent whisper sweet nothings in my ear. I wanted to feel his strong hands around my waist. I craved the protection he offered, though I knew I didn't need it. I wanted him.

To add to the list, Logan was really pissed about our security being broken into so many times. Not only with Gambit, but with that shapeshifter too. He chewed Forge out the other day and now the two were working nearly nonstop to make it foolproof. Honestly I didn't think anything they would do would keep Remy out, but for others is might work.

I sipped more cocoa and rubbed my temples. Why was life so hard?

"Why so sad, chère?"

I gasped and sat up quickly, spilling some of my cocoa but I didn't notice. I was too busy staring into a pair of red on black eyes. All I could do was stare for a moment. My emotions were all over the place, ranging from fury to attraction and I had to yank my eyes away from his before I could answer.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed.

He arched an eyebrow and sat down across from me, lounging casually in his seat. He was wearing civilian clothes today. He wore a tight black T-shirt that emphasized the muscles on his chest, well-worn jeans, as well as his usual trench coat and fingerless gloves. I glared at him, doing my best to ignore how good he looked while mopping up the mess I made with my drink.

"I was jus' passin' by when I saw y' in de window. T'ought I woul' come an' say 'ello."

"Well, you've done so. Now leave."

His face lost that arrogant smirk and for the first time he looked a bit uncertain. "Y' still mad at me, chère?"

My anger quieted slightly and with a heavy sigh I looked down at my fingers. "You haven't done anything to gain my trust yet," I said quietly. "The gifts were admittedly nice; but they don't really mean anything." I snorted. "Besides, you're driving Logan nuts, breaking in all the time."

He grinned mischievously. "He's too easy t' rile up. I'd a t'ought wit' all dose kids runnin' aroun' he woul' be more flexible."

I chuckled and took I sip from my mug. "One would think. But we're getting off topic. Why are you here Gambit?"

"I tol' y' I'd be back, an' now I am. Now my mission is t' woo y'."

"And how is that coming?" I asked sarcastically.

"No' too well apparently." He sighed and rubbed his eyes. "What do I nee' t' do, chère? Help me ou' here," he begged.

I shook my head slowly. "That's something you need to figure out for yourself. But I will tell you this. I will never have a relationship with a man I don't trust. And getting presents everyday, while endearing, doesn't make you any more trustworthy." I swallowed the last of my cocoa and stood up. "Think about it."

Quickly I walked out of the building and paused once I was out the door. Now what? With a small shrug I wandered down the sidewalk, no destination in mind, just wandering.

"Chère, wait!"

I sighed impatiently and turned around to see Gambit jogging after me. "What?"

"Lemme walk y' home. I wanna make sure y' get in alrigh'."

I rolled my eyes. "It's the middle of the afternoon. What do you think is going to happen?"

He shrugged and offered a sloppy smile. "Who knows? Anyt'ing can happen. Dat's why dey're called accidents."

"You really are too annoying for your own good. Besides, I'm not going home."

"Den lemme walk 'round wit' y'." Remy's face grew serious. "Please?" His eyes burned into my own and I had to look away.

"Fine," I muttered. "Come on."

He grinned and stepped up next to me and we walked down the street in silence.

And more silence.

After a couple minutes, I began to get uncomfortable with the quiet that had enveloped us. Usually I wasn't one for much talking, but with Remy I didn't feel comfortable enough with him to like our silence. As if sensing my discomfort, Remy started to talk.

"Is dere a reason in particular why y' don' wanna go back to de institute?"

I shrugged, tucking a strand of my two-toned hair behind my ear. "Hank is trying to get the library restocked, and I didn't want to get hooked into the job. Bobby and Kitty already got shanghaied into helping, I don't want to join their numbers."

He chuckled. "What about de others?"

I shrugged. "Scott is still moping around the house, Emma would probably break a nail if she lifted a book, and Logan and Forge are likely still trying to upgrade the security system." I glared at him. "They'll likely stay up all night working one it and get even more gray hairs. All of this is all your fault by the way."

"Moi?" he asked with an innocent face. "Surely not."

I snorted. "Ever since you started breaking in all the time Logan's been going nuts over the security. It's rather annoying."

"Sorry, chère, bu' your security _was_ really sad. Bu' Wolvie's done some real nice upgrades." He nodded approvingly. "It's actually a challenge now."

I rolled my eyes. "I'll be sure to tell him you approve," I said dryly.

He cocked and eyebrow. "So y' tol' Wolvie' dat I'm de one sneakin' into de mansion?"

"No, and I probably won't."

"Why?"

"Because he'll overreact. I don't think you're going to do anything stupid again, so he'd just start worrying about nothing. Besides, as you said, he's doing our security a world of good."

He threw his head back and laughed. "You're a contrary one, ain't y'?"

I sniffed dramatically. "I have no idea what you're talking about." My eye fell on a music store as he chuckled at me. Briskly I started walking towards it,

"Where y' goin' chère?"

"Over here. You coming or not?" I glanced over my shoulder, just in time to see him smirk and follow me into the store.

The store wasn't very large, but it was well stocked. It catered to my broad taste in music, and I always found something that I liked. I started browsing, flicking through the stacks of music and I could hear Remy doing the same not far away.

"What kind o' music do y' like?"

I glanced up at him quickly, then back down to the albums under my fingers. "I like almost anything. Rock, classical, some metal, country, celtic, jazz, world." I shrugged. "Nothing in particular. You?"

" Mainly jazz. What bands do y' like?"

I smirked. "Do you want the whole list or just a few?"

He grinned back, challenging me. "De whole t'ing."

I loved challenges. "Breaking Benjamin, Apocalyptica, Enya, Great Big Sea, Rajaton, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Skillet, Red, The Beatles, The Real Group, Within Temptation, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Norah Jones, New York Voices, Dixie Chicks, A Fine Frenzy, Dala, Nickelback, Charles Mingus, Fireflight, Finger Eleven, the Nylons, Linkin Park, Demon Hunter, Day of Fire, Hoobastank, Barlow Girl, Loreena McKennit, Sarah McLachlan, Evanescence, Three Days Grace, Plumb, Radiohead, Jaci Velasquez, Michelle Tumes, Mediaeval Baebes, Frank Sinatra, Seventh Day Slumber, Stan Rogers, Superchick, Flyleaf—"

He laughed and held up his hands in mock surrender. "Ok, ok, y' win!"

"I thought so," I said smugly.

"You're really no' dat picky about music, eh?" he said thoughtfully.

I shrugged. "As long as it's not screamo music usually I like it ok."

"I haven' heard of a couple o' bands y' mentioned. Apocalyptica, Dala, A Fine Frenzy, and a few ot'ers."

"Apocalyptica is a cello metal group, they have some gorgeous ballads. Dala is an acoustic-folk music Canadian duo and A Fine Frenzy is an American sing-songwriter. She's very talented."

He looked at me curiously. "Do dey have any o' dem on de sample machines?"

I looked up and scanned the walls. "I don't think so, but come here." Remy shrugged and sauntered over as I pulled out my old, beat up, first generation iPod nano. I passed him the earphones while I looked for a song to play him. Eventually I settled on 'Nothing Else Matters' by Apocalyptica and let him listen to it while I continued browsing. Eventually I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to Remy.

"Dey're good," he admitted as he passed my iPod back to me. "I migh' have to buy a CD."

I grinned. "Good. Their section is right over there." I gestured at a pile a few shelves away.

"What else do y' like besides music?" he asked as he walked over to the section I had pointed out to him.

"I like to read, fight, play with Fang, hang out with Bobby and Kitty and Ryan and his friends."

"I've met de Kitty Kat an' Popsicle, bu' who is dis Ryan?"

I missed his dangerous tone. "He's this guy I met at the grocery store. He did me a favour and we've been friends ever since. I like his friends, Jason. Joel, Brett and Tiffany too; even if Jason's and idiot." I grimaced at the memory of our first meeting.

"What did he do?"

I looked up sharply as I noticed his dark tone. "Take it easy there Lancelot, you don't have to ride out and protect my honour."

He arched an eyebrow. "Non?"

"Of course not, I'm not some damsel in distress. I took him down a few pegs."

For some reason he looked immensely proud. "Bon." He went back to examining CDs. "So, do dey know dat you're a—"

"No," I said quickly, cutting him off before anyone else in the store could hear the word 'mutant'. "They don't."

"Ah."

"They're good people," I said softly. "I don't want to lose their friendship, not over something as stupid as _that_."

Suddenly I felt a strange warmth at my back and Remy's breath on my ear. "If dey stop bein' your friend over somet'ing like dat, den dey are not your friends," he whispered I shivered involuntarily and slowly turned around.

When I noticed how close we were, I quickly tried to take a step back but he just stepped closer and placed his hands on the wall on either side of my head. My heart started to beat faster and I felt my face heat up. Remy's face was serious as he slowly bent closer until our foreheads were resting together. He smelled so good.

"You are une belle fille, Taylor. Smart, sexy, friendly, loyal, and confident. Dose friends o' yours would have t' be très stupide not t' like y'." Slowly and gently he rubbed his nose against mine in an Eskimo kiss and my breath caught in my throat. Why did being with Remy have to feel so good?

"Remy, please stop," I whispered.

He paused as seemed to assess the situation. My body was trembling and my breaths were coming unusually fast. Slowly he lowered his arms and took a step away. My breathing came easier, though my cheeks still burned. Remy wasn't very far away, but he did give me more breathing room, and that's all I really needed.

"I'm sorry, chère." He ran his hands through his hair with some frustration. "I jus' wanted t' let y' know how special y' are."

I took a deep calming breath before answering. "I know. It was just kind of sudden." I looked at my watch, it was getting close to five. "So, are you going to walk me back to the mansion?"

His lips twitched into a smile. "Mais oui."

Together we walked out of the store and down the street towards the mansion. Neither of us said anything the entire way, but I was ok with that this time. Why it was so different now, I had no idea, but it was. When we reached the gates I turned to say good bye, but Remy was once again in my personal space. Gently he brushed a strand of white and black hair behind my ear and brushed his lips against my forehead.

"G'night, chère." And then he was gone.

I blinked carefully, and tried to shake the Remy-induced cobwebs away from my mind. Quickly I punched in the security number and the gates opened up for me. A quick jog got me to the door then to the kitchen in record time. Within minutes I had pizzas on the go and Kitty walked in with a huge scowl on her face.

"Where were you!" she exclaimed. "I was stuck trying to stock the library with _Bobby_ while you were off gallivanting in town!"

"I needed to get away for a while," I muttered as I stuck a couple of pepperoni pizzas in the oven then turned to set the table.

"What for?" she demanded, then plucked a plate out of my hands. "Logan's gone," she said by way of explanation.

"What? He left and didn't tell me!" I exclaimed, outraged.

"Well you were gone," Kitty retorted. "So why did you leave?"

I growled and slammed the dishes on the table a little harder than necessary. "Because Remy's back and I needed some time to myself to think!"

Kitty's expression immediately softened. "Remy's back? How did you know?"

I sighed heavily and rubbed my eyes. "He's the one who's been leaving me those gifts. The night that shapeshifter broke in, he left me a bunch of flowers with his card." My mouth twisted wryly. "And he admitted it was him when he ambushed me in town today."

"You talked to him!"

"What did he—"

"Hmm, something smells good in here!" Bobby loudly exclaimed, following his nose to the oven, Fang right on his heels. Kitty rolled her eyes and looked at me significantly.

"We'll talk later," she whispered.

"Whatever," I mumbled, not really looking forward to the conversation. Then I noticed Bobby trying to snitch some pineapple from the Hawaiian pizza I was making. "Bobby, move the hand or lose it!"

**French Translation:**

Moi – me

Chère – dear

Non – no

Bon – good

Une belle fille – a beautiful girl

Très stupide – very stupid

Mais oui – but of course


	13. eXcessive Force

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 13: eXcessive Force**

"Come on, Taylor! Please!"

I rolled my eyes and tried to sort through my laundry with one hand while my other held my cell to my ear. I never could figure out how secretaries managed to hold the phone with their shoulder.

"Stop being such a baby, Ryan," I scoffed. "Bringing guests into the Institute is a big deal. They take security serious around here." I was doing my best to dodge Ryan's requests to visit the mansion. So far it was a losing battle. "Why don't we just go to the mall or something?"

"With Tiffany? Are you serious?"

I rolled my eyes. "It won't kill you to go shopping. Besides, if you fear it so much we can go to the skate park or your house or something. Your mom makes the best cookies."

"But we always go there! We've never been to the mansion. Come on Taylor."

"Puppy eyes don't work through the phone," I said dryly.

"And isn't that a shame."

"For you maybe. Not for me."

He sighed heavily, and I could picture him running a hand through his unruly brown hair. "Please Taylor," he begged using a soft voice that almost broke my heart.

I struggled with myself then gave up. "Arg. Fine. Let me talk to the powers that be." I heard him whoop loudly in triumph with the many congratulations from the guys and rolled my eyes. They were an unstoppable force, no doubt about that. I quickly left my room and wandered around until I found Logan in the gym.

"Hey Logan," I called from the doorway.

"What is it kid?" he grunted as he knocked the stuffing out of a punching bag. Quite literally in fact.

"Ryan and the gang want to come over. What do you think?"

He paused and turned to me. "Do they know?"

He was referring to our mutant secret. "No."

"Hmm."

I sighed. "You have to give me more than _that_ to work with."

Logan glared at me and resumed punishing the punching bag. "Make sure everyone knows that you're bringing in non-Mutant guests, and ask Hank to stay in the sublevels. Otherwise it should be ok."

"Thanks Logan," I called, then brought the phone back up to my ear as I left the gym. "It's a go," I reported and once again Ryan whooped.

"You rock, Taylor."

"I know. When should I be expecting you?"

"Half an hour ok to you?"

"Yeah, sure. I'll open the gate for you."

"See you."

"Bye, Ryan."

I slide my phone closed and then started to hunt everyone down. Not an easy task considering how large the mansion was, but some people are just predictable. Bobby was, of course, in the kitchen and Kitty was naturally with him.

"Hey guys," I greeted as I walked into my domain.

"Hey Taylor," Kitty said with a smile. "What's up?"

"Ryan and the gang are coming over in half an hour. So no powers, mentioning the missions or anything like that. You hear that Bobby?" I asked the boy who had his head stuck in the fridge. He carefully backed out, his arms full of different condiments to make a sandwich.

"Yep," he said cheerfully. "I gotcha."

"Good. Do you guys know where I can find the others?"

"I think Hank is in the library, Logan's in the gym, Scott went out, Forge is probably in the hangar, Storm is in the gardens and I have no idea where Emma is," Kitty answered.

I nodded. "Thank you. Could you let Storm know while I find the others?"

Kitty nodded and stood up. "Sure."

"Thanks." Quickly I left the kitchen and walked to the library. As Kitty predicted, Hank was there, but so was Emma. "Hey guys."

"Hello, Taylor," Hank greeted me cheerfully. "What can I do for you today?"

"Ryan and the gang are coming over. So there can't be any use of powers while they're here and…" I hesitated and looked apologetically at the kind man. I felt terrible for doing this to him. "You'll have to go down to the sublevels I'm afraid. I'm sorry."

Hank just smiled amiably. "I understand, Taylor. Don't worry about it." He turned to Emma. "Will you be able to find what you're looking for?"

She smiled. "Yes. Thank you Hank."

"It was my pleasure. Now, if you need me, I'll be in the lab." Hank lumbered off and Emma and I watched him leave. Finally I sighed and turned to her.

"Do you happen to know where Scott is? Kitty said he went out."

"She is correct. He took Fang with him."

I nodded. "Alright, but if you see him, can you let him know we have guests?"

"Of course."

I nodded briskly then went out to find Forge. He was working on more upgrades to the security, and didn't notice me until I gently tapped him on the shoulder, then he jumped a foot in the air and clutched his chest.

"Don't do that, Taylor! Jeez, give a man a heart attack!"

I hid my snicker carefully. "Sorry Forge. Just wanted to let you know we're having non-Mutant company, so be discreet."

He nodded. "Ok, I gotcha."

"Good." I nodded to him and left the room. They'd be here any minute. Quickly I walked up to the security room, and calmly watched the cameras that kept an eye on the front gate. To amuse myself I twirled the swivel chair in circles, enjoying the dizziness like a child. Finally, my eye caught on the sight of a beat up blue car pulling to a halt in front of the gates. Quickly I pushed the button to open up the gates, and punched it again once they were through to close them.

Quickly I raced to the door, and opened it just in time for them to come up the steps. They all grinned at me—well Joel wasn't grinning, but he was smiling so it was close enough. Tiff even went as far as to tackle me in a bear hug that I didn't appreciate at all.

"Thank you so much for bringing us here!" she exclaimed.

"You're welcome," I said, quickly detangling myself from her arms. I smiled at the others and gestured for them to enter. "Come on in guys. A lot of the students have left for the long week end, but some of us are still here." I needed some sort of explanation for why there are only three students.

They all looked at me in confusion. "What long week end?"

I shrugged. "PD day," I fibbed. "People often take advantage of them to visit their families. So, do you guys want a tour?"

I kept the tour short. Just through the kitchens, library, gym, 'classrooms', and then stopped in the rumpus room where Kitty and Bobby were arguing about what video game to play. They stopped once we entered and smiled.

"Guys, this is Kitty and Bobby. Kitty and Bobby, this is Ryan, Jason, Joel, Brett and Tiffany." They all waved as I said their names.

"Nice to meet you," Kitty said with a smile. "What video game do you want to play?"

Us three girls watched with amusement as the boys argued over what to play, and eventually they settled on _Iron Man_, switching controllers whenever someone died. We chatted amiably and munched on some food I managed to scrounge up from the depths of the kitchen.

"I can't believe you had a hidden stash of all these goodies and I didn't realize it," Bobby muttered ungratefully as he stuffed his face with potato chips.

I rolled my eyes. "Get over it Bobby. Besides, with your stomach, I _had_ to hide it."

Kitty snickered. "She's right you know."

Jason frowned. "You shouldn't get between a man and his food," he groused. "It's not right."

"Stop being such a baby," Tiff chided from her comfortable seat next to Brett. "I swear, all men ever think about is their stomachs." Her eyes gleamed wickedly. "That and one other thing." Us girls erupted into giggles and the guys looked at us strangely.

"Do you know what they're talking about?" Brett asked the others.

Jason shook his head. "Nope."

"Don't look at me," Bobby and Ryan said at the same time.

Joel looked at them with disappointment. "If you don't know what they're talking about, there is no hope for you," he said in his soft voice. That had to be one of the longest things I've heard him say.

"I couldn't agree more," I said cheerfully, toasting Joel with my orange soda. He just smirked and turned his attention back to the screen. Suddenly I felt my phone vibrate against my leg. Twisting carefully, I managed to wriggle the phone out of my pocket and slid it open. "Speak."

"Bonjour, chère."

I quickly sat up. "How did you get this number?" I demanded, outraged. The others looked me curiously.

Remy chuckled on the other end. "I'll nevah say. Now, what are y' doin' tonigh'?"

I eyed the phone warily. "I don't have any plans, why?"

"How would y' like t' go out wit' me?"

"A date?" I asked skeptically, now I had everyone's attention. I waved at them to go back to what they were doing, but they ignored me.

"Mais oui." I considered it in silence for a while, then Remy spoke again. "If I'm t' win back your trust, y' need t' give me de chance."

I sighed. "Fine. When and where?"

"I'll pick y' up at five. Wear something you can walk in."

"Walk in? Wait, Remy!" All I could hear was dial tone. "Jerk," I mumbled, pressing the end button on my phone and putting it away.

"So you have a date with Remy?" Kitty asked eagerly.

"Why didn't you tell me Remy was back in town?" Bobby demanded.

"Oh my god! This is they guy you told me about at the skate park, isn't it?" Tiff asked eagerly.

"Who's Remy?" Ryan asked with a frown.

I held up my hands in surrender. "Jeez, let a girl breathe! Stop asking so many—"

I was abruptly cut off by the door suddenly bursting open to reveal Scott, Fang at his heels, and a man in a trench coat over Scott's shoulder. We all stared in shock as Scott dropped him unceremoniously on the floor.

"This guy knows where Jean is," he said, then noticed Ryan and the others. "Who are they?" he asked with a frown.

Slowly I got to my feet and squared off against Scott, my eyes glittering dangerously. "Bobby, could you get the others please," I asked through gritted teeth.

"Yeah, sure." He quickly disappeared.

"Who are they?" Scott demanded again.

"These are my friends; Ryan, Jason, Joel, Brett and Tiffany. And you, Scott, are a dumbass."

He scowled. "It's not my fault no one told me that we were having guests over. I had no idea! You could have called me on my cell."

"Well excuse me for thinking you might enter the mansion like a regular human being!" I screeched. "Next time I'll be sure to expect you to act stupidly!"

"What's going on here?" Logan demanded in his gravelly voice.

I whirled around and pointed an accusatory at Scott. "Dumbo here, just barged right in with _this_ guy over his shoulder and assumed everything will be hunky dory."

Bobby, who had returned with Storm, Hank and Emma in tow, bent down and rolled over the stranger. "Oh crud," he whispered.

"Is that Harpoon?" Kitty gasped.

I glanced over at our guests who were all staring at us and at Harpoon with shock, alarm and confusion. My gaze drew Logan's and he cursed under his breath.

"Taylor, take care of them," he gestured at them. "I'll send Emma in after you. Just in case things don't work out," he whispered in my ear.

I nodded, understanding the implications of that. "Ok. Follow me guys," I said solemnly. Silently they followed me out of the room and I led them to the kitchen, letting them sit at the huge table.

"What the hell was that?" Jason demanded as soon as the door closed. "Who was that guy and what did he do to the other guy?"

I sighed and rubbed my eyes tiredly. "Ok, guys. This is going to be difficult for you to hear, but you have to listen. Ok?"

Ryan nodded and the others followed suit. "Tell us," Ryan gently requested.

I took a deep breath. "Ok, I really don't know how to ease into this gently, so I'm just going to say it. I'm a mutant." Jason choked on his coke, Tiffany gasped and the others' eyes widened.

"A mutant," Brett finally stuttered.

"Like those that attacked Senator Kelly?" Jason demanded angrily. His eyes widened. "I knew I recognized you from somewhere!" He quickly got to his feet, knocking his chair over in the process. "I'm outta here." He walked quickly towards the door, but I was faster. With a fast throwing motion, I took the water from the vase on the table and froze the door so he could get out. Everyone stared at me—in awe or fear, I couldn't tell.

My lips tightened. "No one is leaving until I get the chance to explain properly," I said firmly. "And as for the Senator, that's probably not the best example, but yes." Ryan got up and started pacing. "All of us here at the mansion are mutants. You saw Hank. This school is actually a school for mutants, that's why there are so few of us. There isn't any holiday. This is a haven for anyone who needs it."

"You attacked an innocent man!" Jason snapped.

"We didn't attack him." I snapped in return. "We were there to save him. Someone told us that the Brotherhood was going to try and take the Senator out, we went there to defend him, but the Brotherhood never showed. We were played."

"You don't dye your hair, do you? That roommate was someone you made up," Tiff suddenly declared, eyes full of comprehension.

"That's right." They all looked like they were still in shock. "I'm sorry for lying to you, but do you really blame me? I wasn't sure how you would react, and some of the things we do can get messy."

"All mutants belong with the MRD," Jason hissed. "That's only way _normal_ people like us can be safe!"

Uncontrollable fury turned my vision red. Without my consent, my fists slammed down on the table, flames flickering around them and scorching the table. The others flinched away, but my blazing eyes were locked on Jason.

"Don't you _dare_ talk to me about the MRD," I hissed venomously. "Don't you _dare_."

"And why not?" he sneered. "All they've ever done is try and protect us."

"And at what cost?" I demanded. "Do you even know what they do? What they've done? Do you?"

"They're justified," he said stubbornly.

"Justified?" I shrieked. "Justified! Were they justified in destroying my life when I had done _nothing_ except be who I am? Were they justified in kidnapping a non-mutant family because they sheltered a mutant who saved their daughter's life?" Tears were streaming down my face by now and all the men in the room were looking rather alarmed, but I continued on in my rant, unable to stop.

"Were they justified in torturing me just because I wouldn't give up the names of other mutants that I knew? Where they justified in doing this to me?" I pointed angrily at the scar across my face with a trembling finger. "Or this?" I pushed up my sleeves to reveal the brands on my upper arms. "Or this?" I yanked off my fingerless gloves, exposing the scars. "Or this?" I pulled up my shirt so they could see more scars on my stomach. "Were they justified Jason?" I cried. "Tell me, because I'd like to know if the reason they put me through hell was justified!" There was a long stretch of silence, filled only by my harsh breathing.

"Taylor?" Tiffany eventually asked quietly. I turned slowly to look at her wide eyes and immediately felt terrible for my outburst. Quickly I turned away, wrapping my arms around myself protectively.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, wiping my tears away but they just kept falling. "I didn't mean to yell at you like that." I felt a tentative hand on my shoulder and immediately shied away. "Don't touch me!" I turned partially and saw Ryan's sad face. "I'm sorry," I apologized again. "I hate it when people touch me."

"That's understandable," he murmured.

"So what was with that Harpoon guy?" Brett asked quietly. I sighed heavily, wiped my tears away, and turned to face them again.

"This isn't the first group of X-men to be organized. A few years ago they were already set up, and there were a lot more people attending this school. But about a year ago there was an accident, an explosion of some kind." I shook my head. "Neither Hank nor Logan were able to figure out what caused it, but in the explosion, the headmaster of the school, Charles Xavier, and Scott's girlfriend, Jean Grey, disappeared.

"Logan reestablished the school a couple months ago, and when he rescued me from the MRD I became a new recruit. He found some of the older members, Kitty, Bobby, Storm, and Scott and they came back to reform the X-men. Though we found Xavier, we still haven't been able to locate Jean, and it's been driving Scott insane." I shrugged. "I can't really blame him. Anyways, apparently he has a lead and this Harpoon guy has information."

"That's so sad," Tiffany said with tears in her eyes. "I can't imagine having someone you love being ripped away like that." Her eyes were on Brett who quickly wrapped his arm around her and kissed her on the forehead.

"It is sad," I agreed quietly. "But we're getting off topic." I fixed each of them with a pointed stare. "Right now each of you has a choice to make. Will you keep our secret, or will you sell us out?" My eyes softened. "Are we still friends?"

There was a long stretch of silence, then Joel spoke.

"I don't know why we're even taking time to consider this," he said calmly, looking me straight in the eyes as my heart froze. "As far as I'm concerned you're good people, Taylor. You have been ever since you cut Jason down to size. I'm your friend, and I'll keep your secret even if no once else does."

I knew there was a reason why I liked Joel so much. I smiled at him, tears stinging my eyes. "Thank you."

Tiffany and Brett looked at each other, then nodded in agreement. "Joel's right," Tiff said in agreement.

Jason slowly nodded grudgingly. "They're right. I'll keep your secret."

I nodded my thanks and then turned to Ryan who was watching me closely. "Well Ryan?"

"Have you ever killed anyone?"

His question caught me off guard, though it probably shouldn't have. "No," I said firmly. "And I don't plan to. So what say you?"

Ryan sighed and smiled wryly. "You're good people. Always have been. Being a mutant doesn't change that. Your secret is safe with us."

I smiled brilliantly at them "Thanks guys."

"So what are your powers?" Jason asked.

I chuckled. They were curious, not frightened. That was good. "I control earth, air, fire and water. Sometime I'll invite you over to watch a Danger Room session. You'll be able to see us all in action. But right now I think you need to go. Like it or not Scott did something incredibly stupid, and we'll probably need to help clean up the mess." I grimaced.

"We understand," Ryan said as he stood, the others following his example. "We'll talk to you later. Go out some time."

I smiled as I led them to the front door. "That sounds nice." I opened the door for them and thumped fists with them as they walked out.

"Have fun tonight," Tiff said. "And introduce Remy to us. I want to meet the guy who caught your eye."

I blushed. "Maybe," I said grudgingly. "See you guys." I quickly shut the door and hurried to the security room to open the gates for them. They waved at the security cameras as they passed by. I chuckled at them, then hurried out to find Logan.

I found him marching towards Scott's room. "Hey Logan, what's the scoop? Are we going to find Jean?"

"No," he growled. "Harpoon didn't have any information about anything. Scott's making a mountain out of mole hill."

"So we're not going anywhere?"

"No."

I shrugged. "Alright then, I'll just go get ready for my date then." I turned to walk away, but Logan quickly grabbed my arm and swung me around, letting go before I could swat him away.

"What date?" he demanded.

"Remy's taking me out tonight. I don't know where, but he's stopping by at five."

"Gumbo's back in town?" he growled and clenched his fists as though to unsheathe his claws. "Why didn't you tell me?"

I shrugged. "You never asked," I offered weakly. He rolled his eyes.

"I suppose he's the one who left you all those gifts, huh?"

"Maybe." He grunted and started stomping over to Scott's room. "He says you've done some really good work on the security system. Apparently it's actually challenging now!" I called after him, and chuckled when his cursing reached my ears.

Casually I sauntered down to my room to figure out what I was going to wear. He said something I could walk in. So I made sure my most comfortable sneakers were on my feet, army green cargo pants on my legs, a black 'There are 3 ninjas on this shirt, find them' shirt, fingerless gloves, and a black sweater around my waist. I made sure I had my cell in my pocket as well as some emergency cash and driver's license. That done I pulled my hair back in a messy ponytail, leaving my bangs down to frame my face. I applied some make up, but not a lot. I didn't want to give the impression I was trying. He was the one who was supposed to impress me.

Once I was done I studied my reflection in the mirror critically. I looked like I was just going to make a quick stop into town. Nothing important, nothing unusual. Just me. Perfect. Casually I checked the clock, it was about 4:45, and decided to watch the gate just in case he came early. And if it was a good place to hide, then all the better. Closeted away in the security room, it was about five to and Remy hadn't shown up, though Kitty did.

"So," she started with a huge grin as she settled comfortably in the swivel chair next to mine. "Are you excited?"

I glared at her, but answered reluctantly. "A bit."

"Where are you going?" She eyed my outfit. "Obviously not somewhere fancy."

I shrugged. "He just said to wear something I can walk in. I can walk in this."

She groaned and rubbed her forehead. "You are so stupid sometimes. You can still walk in a summer dress with some flip-flops. You didn't have to go all…tomboy!"

"This is what I am," I retorted. "If he doesn't like it, then tough!" I glanced at the TV screens and grinned. "Besides, it's too late to change."

Kitty glanced up with surprise as Gambit rolled up to the gates on a very sexy black motorcycle. I pushed the button to open the gate as Kitty whistled.

"Wow. I can't decide whether we should show Logan the bike or not."

I snickered. "Either is potentially dangerous. Come on. I have to go." Kitty followed me out of the room and we walked to the door together, giving her enough time to go through a pep talk I didn't really need. I tuned her out absentmindedly and opened the front door to reveal a very calm and relaxed looking Remy. He was dressed in a pair of jeans, a black shirt, his usual trench coat and combat boots. He was leaning casually against the doorframe with a pair of dark sunglasses hiding his eyes and he grinned lazily when he saw me.

"Bonjour, chère," he purred. "Y' ready?"

I opened my mouth to say yes, but Logan interrupted me.

"Hold up there, bub," he growled. I turned quickly and scowled at him as he stalked towards the door. Remy straightened and stood firmly at the door as Logan faced off against him. I had to admire Remy's guts. Logan looked like some angry water buffalo and any other guy probably would have run off, but Remy stood his ground and even smirked condescendingly at the shorter man. We all stood in tense silence for a couple moments, then Logan spoke.

"I want her home by ten o'clock. Not a minute later."

"Logan!" I protested. " That's not even—"

"Dat's fine," Remy said coolly. "I'll have de petite home by den, _Wolvie_." He emphasized the horrible nickname mockingly then turned to me. "Ready?"

I sighed and nodded. "Yeah, lets go." I followed him out to his bike and I swear I heard a low whistle from Logan behind me. I pulled on the helmet Remy offered, then climbed on behind me. Remy waited until I was completely settled on the seat with my arms around his stomach before taking off.

I enjoyed the ride. A lot. The speed was exhilarating, and though the wind whipped almost painfully against my bare skin, I didn't feel cold. Warmth from Remy's body warmed me from the outside, and the feeling of his hard abs under my fingers stoked the fire within me. It was almost alarming, but still very enjoyable.

Remy drove us out of town, down a few dirt roads until finally pulling to a halt next to a rather large evergreen tree. It was quiet, after Remy had shut off the engine that is, and I climbed off the bike and propped my helmet up on the seat and looked around. It was absolutely beautiful. Birds were chirping, there was a bit of a light breeze that smelled faintly of rain, a gorgeous view with the town in the distance, and then Remy lightly grasped my hand and tugged me around a clump of trees and I gasped.

Underneath a tree, spread out on a clichéd red and white checkered blanket was a picnic. Sorry, picnic didn't even begin to describe it. It was a whole freaking banquet complete with softly glowing candles. I gaped at the scene for a moment, and then turned to look up at Remy who was looking at me with a smug grin on his face.

"You like?"

"Hell yes! How on earth did you pull this all off?"

He grinned at me mischievously. "Dat's for me t' know and y' t' find out. Now, let's eat." He tugged me forward to the blanket where two plates and two bundles of cutlery wrapped in a red napkin sat. Eagerly I sat down and helped myself to the piles of food including gumbo, rice, salads, rolls, chili, pasta, garlic bread, chips, fish, everything imaginable. I took a little bit of each and was amazed to find that I absolutely loved everything.

"Oh my god," I murmured as I tasted a bit of the gumbo. "This is absolutely amazing. Did you make this?"

"Mais oui. I made almost everyt'ing 'ere."

"It's fabulous," I complimented him again. "Who taught you to cook?"

I watched as his eyes softened a bit as I ate some more gumbo. "Tante Mattie. She is a very powerful voodoo witch and was de cook at the T'ieves Guild where I grew up."

"You miss her, don't you?" I asked softly.

He looked at me sharply, then nodded slowly. "Oui. I miss her very much."

"Why don't you go visit her some time? Or at least give her a call. I'm sure she would love to hear from you."

He looked away from towards the setting sun, a sad twist to his mouth. "Peut-être. But I left de guild under bad circumstances, chère. It ain't safe t' talk to her now. Maybe never."

I frowned at me and quickly swallowed my bite of food. "Don't say that," I said fiercely, winning a surprised look from him. "Don't give up hope, Remy. These days it's the most valuable thing you can have. You'll see your Tante Mattie again someday, Remy. Believe it."

He looked at me solemnly for a moment, then smiled. A real smile too, not his usual smirk. "T'ank y', chère," he said quietly.

I smiled back. "You're welcome." I stared up into his eyes, enchanted by the heat of his gaze and the brilliant colour of his unique eyes. My stomach fluttered nervously and my palms tingled as Remy's face grew closer.

Gently his nose skimmed along my cheek and my eyes closed as I sucked in a deep breath. I felt my plate being gently taken out of my hands and then his large, calloused hands gently cupped my face. My skin felt like it was on fire, but it felt good. Ever so faintly I felt his lips brush against mine, as if asking that it was ok. In response I tentatively pressed my lips more firmly into his and moved them against his.

Remy's response was thrilling and frightening. His lips moved confidently against mine and I found my bottom lip being pulled between his. I gasped and he nibbled on my lip, and that was all the invitation Remy needed. His tongue delved into my mouth and my insides turned to jelly. I had always thought that that was an awfully clichéd phrase used by amateur writers that didn't really happen, but God, with the way I was shaking, it certainly felt like it was true.

Slowly my hands moved around his neck to pull him closer, which he seemed to approve of if his enthusiastic kissing was any indication. My fingers tangled in his hair and I couldn't help but notice how silky it was. Then it happened. His fingers brushed against the bare skin of my stomach as my shirt accidentally slid up and I shuddered violently as I remembered the last time someone touched the skin of my belly.

Pictures of the MRD, the scarred officer that tortured me in that metal chair, and of Stone as he grinned manically as he cut me up. Suddenly, I didn't feel Remy's hands on me, I felt the aching burn from the bands and the whip. With a small gasp I pushed Remy's hands away and scrambled to get a few feet away from him. My body was shaking uncontrollably, and I curled up in a small ball as though to protect my body from the phantom pain.

I felt a large hand touch my shoulder, and I reacted instinctively. With a cry I whipped around and threw him against the ground, pinning him there with my body. My hand rose up as if I was going to punch him, only a large ball of flames gathered on my fist. I was about to unleash it when I suddenly realized just who I had pinned under my body.

Remy lay on the grass beneath me, looking up at me with his piercing red eyes. Remy, not Stone. Remy, who hands were gentle and loving; not Stone who was hard, frightening and painful. Remy, my potential boyfriend, not my torturer who I was about to incinerate, who I pushed away in the middle of a make out session.

God, what kind of freak was I who attacked a guy who was just kissing me and when I had been enjoying it thoroughly?

Slowly the flames on my fist extinguished and I rolled off him. Quickly I turned my back on him, trying to hide my burning cheeks. A few tears streaked down my face and I snuffled wetly as I brought my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around my legs.

I was such a mess. Sure, I had known it before, it wasn't exactly normal or healthy to shun human contact like I did, but this was the first time I realized the extent of my problems. And now Remy knew it too. Would he want to stay with a girl as broken as me? I wasn't sure if I would in his place. A man as attractive as Remy would probably be used to sane, beautiful girls who could kiss him—and let's face it, probably do a lot more than that—without attempting to kill him.

"Taylor?" Remy asked quietly. I cringed at the sound of my name—I couldn't remember the last time he used my proper name—and tried to wipe my tears away and gain a measure of control, but they kept flowing anyways. Eventually I gave up and swallowed painfully.

"I'm sorry," I croaked, my voice cracking painfully.

I heard him slowly stand and walk to my side. He sat next to me but didn't attempt to touch me. I just turned my face away, trying to hide my tears. We sat in silence for a long time, giving me time to stop my tears. Eventually Remy started speaking again.

"Are y' alrigh', chère?"

I turned and stared at him in disbelief. How could he just sit there as though he hadn't had a brush with Death? He didn't look scared, horrified, angry or disgusted at my breakdown, he simply looked concerned.

"I'm sorry," I said quietly, my voice a bit more steady than before.

"What for?"

I looked at him incredulously. "What for?" I repeated, astonished. "What do you mean, what for? I completely freaked out on you for no reason at all, and nearly kill you in the process! God, I'm such a freak!"

His hands flew to my shoulders and I gaped at him as he gave me a small shake. "Stop," Remy immediately barked, staring at me intensely. "You're not a freak, so don' even t'ink abou' it. I may not know de details abou' what happened to y', but I know it was somet'ing terrible. People don' get over somet'ing like dat easily. Frankly I'm surprised y' let me touch y' at all. You're strong, chère, I know wit' time and patience you'll get over dis."

I stared into his eyes, touched by his words, but I had to know… "Are you willing to give me those things, Remy?"

His eyes softened, and his grip on my shoulders relaxed. Tenderly he brushed his thumb under my eye, brushing away a few tears I hadn't realized I had shed. ""Always," he murmured. Swiftly he leant in and gave me a quick peck on the lips. "Now," he continued brightly, as if nothing had just happened. "Y' ready for dessert?"

I smiled at him. "Yeah, sounds great. What is it?"

"Chocolate cake."

"You're my hero."

He chuckled and climbed to his feet then helped me up. We walked back to the blanket and sat back down in our places. Then Remy pulled out a large chocolate cake from a basket that almost looked too good to eat. Dark chocolate icing with chocolate shavings spread liberally over the surface.

"Did you make this too?" I asked in disbelief.

"Mais oui. I'm a good chef, if I do say so myself."

I shook my head and accepted the piece he offered me. "You're amazing." Quickly I took a bite of the cake and I groaned. "This has to be the best cake I have ever tasted."

"I'm glad y' like it, chère. Some people don' appreciate de dark chocolate on top. Too bitter dey say."

I snorted. "Dark chocolate is damn good, plus it's better for you than milk chocolate. A double plus I would say." I took another bite, then nearly choked as my cell phone started to ring shrilly. Carefully I put my plate to the side and pulled my cell out of my pocket.

"Hello?"

"It's me," Logan growled on the other end. "We've got a problem."

"What's wrong?" I demanded.

"Sinister has set up a trap for Scott. We're going after him. We need you back at the school yesterday."

"Shit, ok. I'll be there in 20 minutes."

"That's not soon enough, Taylor."

I scowled. "Well what do you want me to do? We're not in town!"

He growled. Literally growled. "Hurry," he snapped, then hung up on me. Quickly I snapped my phone shut and turned to Remy.

"Y' need to go." It wasn't a question, more of an understanding statement.

"Yes, emergency back at the mansion. I'm so sorry."

He nodded and kissed my hand. "It's not a problem, chère. Let's go." Quickly he pulled me up and we hurried towards the bike.

"What about the food?" I asked.

"I'll deal wit' it after. Don' worry 'bout it."

"In case I don't have a chance to tall you later, I had a great time tonight. Thank you."

We stopped at the bike and Remy paused as he handed me the helmet. Quickly he kissed me and pulled me close to his body. I kissed him back and wrapped my arms around his neck, burying my fists into his hair. Eventually we pulled away for some air and he rest his forehead against mine.

"Like it enough t' try it again sometime?"

I grinned up at him. "Definitely," I breathed.

"Good," he murmured. "Now let's go before Wolvie does somet'ing stupid."

I shoved the helmet on my head as Remy started the bike, then climbed on behind him. I clutched his waist tightly as we roared away from the magical evening. Sometimes being an X-man wasn't a lot of fun.

**Sorry it took so long to get out, but here is another chapter at last. Hopefully it's length and all the drama makes up for its tardiness. For those of you who might have been looking forward to a fight scene, sorry to disappoint, but I can guarantee that there will be many more opportunities later.**

**Cheers!**

**French:**

Chère – dear/darling

Mais Oui – of course

Bonjour – hello

Oui – yes

Peut-être


	14. Battle Lines

**Chapter 14: Battle Lines**

I know I'm not the calmest person in the world, in fact I would bet I'm in the bottom 10%. My temper does get the best of me at times, but I think I manage myself quite well. So when I do slip up from time to time, I think it's understandable. Still, if someone didn't remove Bobby from the kitchen within the next two minutes I would kill him.

"I'm hungry Taylor, when's supper going to be ready?"

"It'll be ready when it's ready," I said through my clenched teeth while trying to simultaneously making chili and Caesar salad and also checking on the baked potatoes.

"But I'm hungry now!"

Angrily I dumped a lot of chili powder into the pot and stirred it around viciously, almost slopping some of it out of the pot. Then I turned to the salad and squirted a bunch of the dressing into the bowl and stirred it in.

"But—"

"Kitty!" I screeched.

I heard pounding footsteps, then Kitty burst into the kitchen panting heavily. She paused just inside the doorway and looked at me with a puzzled expression.

"Yeah, Taylor?"

"Get him out of here before I kill him," I hissed. I was sure I looked possessed. My hair had decided to have a life of its own this morning so I had surrendered without brushing it properly. And if my reflection in the pot was any indication it now resembled a demented, black and white haystack. My eyes were twitching from lack of sleep—up too late reading—as well as anger, and were likely bloodshot as well.

"Ok," Kitty said soothingly, grabbing a protesting Bobby by the arm and dragging him out of arms reach. "I'll take him out for a while. You can start eating without us."

"Thank you," I said as she dragged away a protesting Bobby. I took a deep calming breath and continued cooking. 15 minutes later supper was on the table and the whole team—except Kitty and Bobby—had gathered around the table. Even Fang had joined us, though he consented to eating his dog food on the floor in the corner.

Hank sniffed the air appreciatively as he settled himself into one of the chairs and poured himself some water. "Hmm, this smells divine, Taylor."

"Yeah," Forge chimed in as he speared a potato with his fork. "And I bet it tastes even better."

I smiled as they all helped themselves to food—Ororo's and Emma's servings considerably smaller than that of the men. "Thanks guys. I hope you like it."

"Where are Kitty and Bobby?" Logan asked.

I shrugged. "Out somewhere. Kitty took Bobby away before I killed him and told me to start without them. They'll be back soon though, Bobby was really hungry."

Everyone chuckled and dug into their food. There was a few minutes of silence as we just ate, then Logan started to speak.

"So Forge, how are the updates for the Danger Room coming?"

"Ahmosht dun." Food flew in all directions and anyone who had the ill fortune of looking at him at that moment was greeted with a very unattractive look at ABC food.

"Swallow first, Forge," Ororo reprimanded as Emma looked at Forge with her nose wrinkled in disgust. I didn't blame her.

Forge quickly swallowed and offered an apologetic smile. "Sorry. They're almost done," he repeated.

"And the security?"

I looked at Logan in disbelief. "Are you seriously going on about that? Remy has stopped breaking in."

"Yeah Logan," Scott agreed. "We've done more updates on the security system than Forge has done repairs on the Blackbird, and that's saying something."

"Just because he hasn't broken in doesn't mean he can't. And I'd be a lot more comfortable if he couldn't. I don't suppose he's mentioned any inability to enter the mansion?"

I shook my head. "We haven't talked about it. Besides, Remy's ego is so large, even if I did question him about it, he probably wouldn't admit it if he had failed."

"So how are things between you two?" Ororo asked.

I felt a blush rising over my cheeks and determinedly kept my eyes on my plate. "Good," I said shortly.

"You can bring him here, you know," she continued. "He's welcome here."

I arched an eyebrow and turned to Logan. "Is he?"

Ororo turned to glare at Logan when he started to grumble. "Yeah," he grunted finally. "Gumbo can come over."

"Perhaps he can help us with the security system," Emma suggested calmly. We all turned to stare at her and she coolly arched an eyebrow at us. "He is a thief after all, he would know what would stop one the best."

"But he would know how to get it!" Logan protested.

"He's dating Taylor," she pointed out. "I highly doubt he means us any ill will."

"I'm with Logan on this one," Scott said.

"Of course you are," I grumbled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded.

"Well it's no secret you don't like Remy."

"He's a thief," Scott retorted. "How can his intentions be honourable?"

"Why can't you just give him a chance?"

"That's enough," Logan barked. "Taylor can date who she likes, end of story. And we're not going to let him near the security system." He got to his feet and gave me a nod. "Thanks for supper, kid." And he walked away, the others following suit quickly.

Fang looked up at me and whined quietly before padding over and sticking his head under my hand. I sighed heavily and scratched him behind his ears.

"Thanks buddy," I told him with a twisted smile. "I needed that."

Reluctantly I got up and started to clean up the kitchen. I shoved the plates, cutlery and glasses in the dishwasher, put the leftovers in the fridge and cleaned the pots. Half an hour later the kitchen was clean, it was dark and Kitty and Bobby were just coming in.

"Hey guys," I said tiredly. "Where were you?"

"I took him to the arcade for a while," Kitty said, sitting down at the table. "Gave him some food to tide him over, and now we are both starving for some real food."

I chuckled. "Compliments will get you no where," I teased, but took out some food for them and warmed it up.

"Sorry about being so annoying earlier," Bobby said sheepishly. "Sometimes my stomach gets the best of me."

"Only sometimes?" I asked with a smirk.

"Ok, a lot. But still, I'm sorry."

"It's ok. I wasn't exactly keeping my cool very well either," I grimaced. The timer beeped and I took their plates out of the microwave and set them on the table. "Here you go."

"Thanks!" they said in unison, and dug in.

"So any good games at the arcade?" I asked, watching them eat.

"Oh yeah!" Bobby said enthusiastically. "There was this one called—"

"I don't need the details," I interrupted him quickly. "I'm not really into that kind of thing."

"But there were zombies! Even Kitty liked it."

She blushed. "It wasn't bad," she admitted reluctantly. "Kind of fun. I prefer the real thing though."

"You fight zombies in real life?" I questioned her mockingly.

She gave me a dirty look. "You know what I mean. I prefer real fighting. But it was still fun."

"Maybe we can do it again some time," Bobby offered tentatively, his eyes focused on Kitty. Was he asking her out on a date?

Suddenly there was a yellow and green blur, a gush of air and Rogue was standing right in front of us. Fang bared his teeth a bit at her, but didn't growl.

"Well, look what the cat dragged in," I drawled.

"Where's Logan?" she demanded.

"I hope he's fixing the locks on this place," Kitty muttered.

"It's important, I need to talk to him," she said by way of explanation.

"Let me clarify what Kitty means," Logan growled as he walked into the kitchen. "You're not welcome here Rogue."

"Amen to that," I murmured.

"Logan, the Brotherhood works for Magneto and I just found out they're making a move tonight, against the X-men," Rogue rushed on, ignoring our unwelcoming attitude.

"Why don't you just give it a rest?"

"Listen to me! Something else is going on. Quicksilver didn't know it all but Magneto is planning something big."

"Ok, you want to keep crying wolf? Then come on." He grabbed her arm and dragged her out of the room.

I watched them go for a moment the stood up and followed them at a distance. Fang also left the kitchen with me and together we went down to the sublevels and waited until Logan was done with Rogue. When he left the room, he was deep in thought.

"Do you think she's trying to trick us again?" I asked quietly. As much as I disliked the other girl, I thought she was smarter than that.

"It's possible. It just doesn't add up though." He growled again then walked purposefully towards Cerebro.

"Where are you going?"

"To find Emma, maybe she can check Rogue's story. Gather up the others, make them suit up. My gut tells me there's going to be trouble."

"Ok." Fang and I took the lift up and hurried through all the rooms to warn everyone. "Fang, find Hank." He wuffed quietly and put his nose to the floor, then trotted to the kitchen. I peeked my head in and found Hank and Ororo making tea. "Hey guys," I said.

"Hello Taylor," Hank said grimly. "What's the verdict on our…um…guest?"

"We aren't positive yet, but Logan wants us to suit up anyways." They nodded.

"Thank you, we'll be ready shortly," Ororo said.

"Good." I nodded to them, then left with Fang. "Ok boy, find Bobby." This time he led me to the living room where Bobby and Scott were watching TV and Kitty was reading a book. "Logan wants us to suit up," I reported.

Scott scoffed. "Don't tell me he believed Rogue's sob story."

I rolled my eyes. "Does it really matter?" I snapped. "Logan wants us to get ready, so we get ready."

"There's nothing to get ready for!"

"Whatever. But don't come crying to me when Logan chews you out for disobeying orders." I stalked out of the living towards my own. Quickly I changed into my uniform then followed Fang to Logan. He was leaning against the wall opposite of the lifts with his uniform on, but his hood down.

"Hey," he greeted me. He even scratched Fang behind the ears when he placed his head under Logan's fingers.

"Hey, what's the verdict?"

"Dunno yet, Emma's checking her out."

Just at that moment the doors to the lift opened and Emma walked out.

"What did you find out?" Logan demanded.

"Nothing," she reported. "Rogue's mind is a broken patchwork of thoughts from everyone she's ever touched. Sorting it out could take days, even weeks."

Logan thought about it for a moment, then raised his hood and stalked towards the living room.

"Change of heart about her story?" Emma asked.

"Rogue's not stupid. She had to know how we'd react, but she came anyway. Come on." Emma and exchanged glances then followed him. "Here's the plan," he announced as we walked in, Hank and Ororo joining us, all geared up. "We're—" he stopped mid sentence and glared at the three not in their suits. "Why are you geared up?"

"What? You can't tell me you believe her," Scott said defensively. "Not after—"

"One, I told you to get ready, so you should be ready. And two, if those Brotherhood clowns what to mess with us then we'll go after them!"

"Wait," Emma gasped. "We won't need to. They're here."

As if on cue, a green blur entered the room and smashed Emma into the wall with a chilling crunch. Quicksilver appeared with a cocky smirk.

"Take out the telepath first, check. Invite ourselves in, check," he taunted us. Then he disappeared and the ground beneath our feet started to shake. I struggled to keep my balance and looked up at Fang's bark then immediately wished I hadn't. A solid wall of earth was rushing towards the mansion. I thrust out my hands to stop it, but it hand too much momentum. It crashed through the window, making chunks of glass and rocks fly everywhere. For a while it was pure chaos as we struggled to get on top of the earth. When I finally managed to free myself, the Brotherhood was coming in.

"Tin Man's mine!" I called out, and advanced on the Russian guy. I ignored the others taking out the other Brotherhood members and quickly attacked. I stomped my foot on the ground and made a large boulder rise up in front of me. I punched it, sending it flying towards the Tin Man. He managed to block it and suddenly the ground beneath my feet started to tremble. I swore loudly as I staggered about. I wasn't going to beat this guy with his own element, so I was going to have to me creative.

I raised my hands and made a large dust cloud swarm around him. I could see his silhouette staggering and the ground beneath my own feet stopped shaking as he lost concentration. Then with a deep breath, I blew and a tornado force wind shot away from me and hit him solidly in the chest. He went soaring through the air and crashed against a wall. He groaned and slumped to the ground unconscious and I turned to find my next victim, just in time to see Blob do an impressive cannonball on top of Logan.

I considered going down to help him, but figured Logan had it covered. Instead I turned to that annoying green man who was hopping around taunting a now glassesless Scott. I snarled and chopped through the air with my hand, making a large spike of rock fly out of the ground and straight into the Frogman's chest. He went flying through the air, almost hitting Logan as he soared out of the hole Blob had made.

Warily I turned to Scott who had finally closed his eyes. Seeing that his situation was under control, I turned to the last of the Brotherhood—the girl—who seemed ready to take us all on.

"Nobody's that lucky, darlin'," Logan scoffed as we surrounded her.

"Dom." Rogue stepped forward and put a hand on the girl's shoulder. She whirled around and pointed her guns at Rogue. "Don't."

"We all choose sides, Rogue," Dom said coolly. Rogue then touched Dom on the cheek with her bare hand and she collapsed with a cry. We stood in silence for a moment then a groan from where the doorway had once been drew our attention.

"My nose!" Emma cried. "I think Quicksilver broke my nose!"

Ororo hurried over to inspect her nose, and Logan offered Scott his glasses. I watched the two carefully, but they seemed all right for the most part.

"Let's dump this trash at the corner and call the MRD on them," Logan decided. "Pietro here will like that," he added with a glance at Quicksilver.

"Rogue was right," Emma said quietly. "This was all a diversion." I could tell Rogue really wanted to say 'I told you so', but she refrained. I thought better of her for it.

"Guys!" We all turned and looked at Forge who just appeared. "Something's happening. You should see this."

"And where the heck were you?" Kitty demanded, propping her fists on her hips and glaring at Forge who just offered her a sheepish smile.

"Break it up children," I scolded them lightly. "There are more important things to be doing. Now what do we need to see?"

We all trooped down to the war room where Forge showed us the news reports on the MRD. Almost all facilities were being attacked, and I couldn't help but feel a surge of satisfaction as I watched the buildings burn.

"It was a diversion," Logan reiterated.

"Thank you Captain Obvious," I muttered. Logan glared at me and continued.

"Magneto wanted us out of the way so he could take down the MRD."

"Only the central facility hasn't been attacked yet," Forge clarified.

"Why are we making this seem like a bad thing?" I demanded. "Magneto just took out the MRD!"

"Kelley's not going to lay down for this," Logan said grimly. "It's going to start the war, exactly what Magneto wanted."

"And thanks to the Professor, we all know who that ends," Ororo said grimly.

"Now you want to get ready?" Logan asked Scott mockingly. Scott opened his mouth to retaliate, but I leapt in first.

"So what are we going to do?"

"We're going down the central facility. That's where Magneto will strike next. Everyone, meet in the Blackbird in five minutes. If you aren't there, we leave without you."

Fifteen minutes later we were in all in the Blackbird—including Fang—and were nearing the city and eyed the situation. Three MRD helicopters were flying around with their spotlights on as though searching for something.

"Looks like they're in the thick of it," Logan said grimly as we approached.

I grunted in affirmation, then my eyes widened as something large and fiery flew in our direction.

"Incoming!" Hank yelled, and quickly maneuvered the Blackbird out of harms way. Logan then pulled a 180 and followed the projectile. We landed a few yards away and everyone quickly exited to get a look at what it was.

"Oh, this is bad," Storm said as she looked at a large man dressed in red and a funny looking helmet who was laying prone in a large crater in the middle of the street.

"Who is that?" I asked.

"Juggernaut," Logan said.

"I don't like the sounds of that."

"You shouldn't. He's virtually unstoppable while in motion," Logan explained.

"But if he's like this, then what did this to him?" Kitty asked.

Her question was answered by a loud roar. We all looked up to see a giant, glowing red monster destroying the MRD facilities and coming our way. I swallowed painfully.

"Aw, shit," I mumbled.

We watched in morbid fascination as the monster stomped closer, knocking over buildings easily and without a care. When the helicopters drew too close, it batted them out of the sky like flies. It didn't even notice all the bullets they had shot at it.

"Frost, take Forge up in the Blackbird and try and shut that thing down," Logan ordered. "Keep us in telepathic contact." They raced to do as he said, and he continued shouting orders. "Beast, Rogue, Shadowcat and Fang, protect the crowds. Storm, Cyclops, Iceman, Aether, you're with me."

"What are we doing?" Iceman asked.

"Guess," was Logan's only reply and he unsheathed his claws and charged forward. I followed quickly, watching the others out of the corner of my eye so I wouldn't get in their way, but concentrating on the task ahead of me.

With a sweep of my arms, a created a small tornado around me and lifted myself into the air. Storm was doing the same with Wolverine in her arms and Iceman and Cyclops were circling on Iceman's ice. Quickly I summoned a large chunk of pavement and made it float next to me, waiting for Wolverine's signal.

"Now!" he cried and Storm tossed me towards the monster. He shot through the air and his claws embedded in it, but it didn't seem to feel anything. "It's just a girl!" I heard him cry with horror, and I cursed to myself. This was going to complicate things.

Still, I heaved the boulder at the monster and frowned when it shattered to pieces when it hit, but it didn't seem to do anything to it besides make it shake its head in annoyance.

"Aether!" Iceman called out. "Let's see if we can we can stop its feet!"

"Ok!" I lowered myself to the ground and when it put its foot down I made the earth as inconsistent and possible so it sunk down. Then I hardened the earth, and gathered more to anchor it in place. I saw Iceman trying to freeze the other leg and Cyclops shooting lasers at it, but I didn't think it was going to work.

I was right. With an angry roar it broke away from Iceman's hold, then ripped its leg out of mine with a little more effort. I grunted as pavement and rock rained down on me, but once it was clear, I raced after it again. As I ran I melted a chunk of Iceman's ice and attempted to slice its leg. I couldn't see any difference, but judging by its roar, it felt it at least.

I tried again, and was awarded with a small slice on its foot. It kind of resembled a paper cut, and it must have stung like one, because the next thing I knew the foot was soaring in my direction and it kicked me away. The air whooshed out of my lungs as the foot connected with my body and I went soaring through the air. I hit a building hard, hitting my head against it and slowly started to fall twenty feet to the ground.

For a while I couldn't do anything, not even breathe. I struggled to keep myself from panicking, I had the wind knocked out of me at the very least, and it would take some time to get it back. Eventually, taking, long, deep breaths I managed to breathe, though it hurt like hell to do so. I probably cracked a couple of ribs. I then opened my eyes, and I had to force myself not to panic again.

I couldn't see. That was bad.

I forced myself to take deep, even breaths and experimented with the rest of my body. My head hurt like hell, but I didn't think my skull was cracked or anything. Maybe a concussion, but I think that was the extent of that problem. My left shoulder was dislocated, but that could be dealt with easily enough. My right ankle also felt like was on fire, but since I could move it a bit, I didn't think it was broken.

"Aether?" I heard Hank's voice above me and I struggled to put a smile on my face. I think it more of a grimace in the end.

"Hey Beast," I greeted him, my voice sounded like a croak. "Think you can lend me a hand?"

"What hurts?"

"I think I sprained my right ankle, my left shoulder is dislocated, I might have cracked some ribs, my head likely now has a lump the size of Texas, and I can't see," I reported between pants for breath. Man, broken ribs hurt sucked.

"You're eyes are covered in blood, that probably the cause of your blindness," Beast said.

"Oh good," I said with relief.

"Now, let's get you back to the Blackbird so I can fix you up." I felt him pick me up gently and carry me away in his arms. I felt drowsiness start to overtake me and I rested my head against Beast's chest.

"Don't go to sleep Aether," Beast said sternly. "You might have a concussion. You need to stay awake."

I groaned, but held my head up and tried to stay awake. I concentrated on the pain in my ribs and immediately started to perk up a bit.

"Hey, Beast?"

"Yes?"

"Did we win?"

He chuckled. "Yes, we did. Tildie is safe and everyone else seems to be all right, at least for the most part. Everyone is bruised—except Logan of course—but we're ok."

"How come I'm always the one that ends up in the hospital?" I complained. "It's not fair."

"Well, no one else got kicked by giant. Plus you just seem to be a magnet for trouble," Hank offered. I grunted in reply, but then clenched my teeth as a new wave of pain swept over me. The adrenalin must have been wearing off.

Hank brought me into the Blackbird to the first-aid station at the back. With some help from Ororo and Emma they started to fix me up. First he cleaned out my eyes, which made me feel a whole lot better about the entire situation. Then he set about fixing the rest of me up.

I ended up cursing a blue streak as he put my shoulder back in place and poked and prodded all my other injuries. Thankfully Tildie was asleep so I didn't have to worry about ruining her innocence.

Once we landed, Hank hurried me away to the med lab where he gave me a few x-rays and other tests that I didn't understand the point of. Still, it was over fairly quickly, and Hank soon came back with the results.

"Good news Taylor," Hank said cheerfully, just as we were landing. "Your ankle isn't broken, and you don't have a concussion. There are, however, a few hairline fractures on two of your ribs. So I'll wrap up your ribs, and we'll start putting ice one your foot."

"Sounds great," I said tiredly.

"Oh, and you have a visitor." I looked up with a frown and blinked at a very disheveled and tired looking Remy. "I'll give you two a moment," Hank said quietly, then disappeared. Remy and I stared at each other for a moment, but I cleared my throat and looked away.

"Hey," I murmured.

That seemed to snap him out of whatever trance he had been in. With three long strides he was in front of me and wrapping his arms around me. I stiffened for a moment, the relaxed in his grip, ignoring the nearly unbearable pain in my ribs. I turned up my face to get a good look at him, but his lips pressed feverishly against my own, and I couldn't concentrate on anything else. Eventually I managed to push him away a bit, but his arms were still loosely around me.

"What are you doing here?" I asked quietly, resting my head against his chest.

"What's dis? A man can' come an' see his injured girlfriend?"

I rolled my eyes. "Of course you can, but how did you know I was injured?"

He grunted sourly. "De news. Dey caught a lot o' de fight on film and dey seemed t' take perverse pleasure in playin' your accident multiple times."

I winced. "How bad did it look?"

He was silent for a moment. "I t'ought you had died," he finally murmured.

My arms around him tightened for a moment. "I'm sorry. I hadn't realized."

"Don' evah do dat again," he said fiercely. "Call me when y' leave t' go ona mission and when y' get back. Understood?"

"Yessir," I said meekly, kind of enjoying his protectively. At least he didn't try and convince me not to go fight.

"Good. Now, let's get de good doctor t' fix y' up."

I smiled and kissed him lightly. "Ok." I then buried m face in his chest once more and smiled. It felt nice, being cared about. If this was going to be Remy's reaction, maybe I would get hurt more often.

**Here's another for you guys. I think I should be rewarded for posting again so soon! And you know what the best way to reward an writer is? **

**Review!**

**We're up too a hundred now guys, so keep 'em coming!**


	15. Stolen Lives

_Ok, sorry about the long wait guys, but here's another chapter at last! Enjoy, and don't forget to review!_

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 15: Stolen Lives**

"Who is this?"

I groaned quietly and rubbed the sleep from my eyes as I heard Logan's growl next door. Slowly I sat up and winced as Logan's door slammed shut and he stomped down the hall.

"What on earth?" I muttered and slipped from my bed to follow him, stubbing my toe on my dresser in the process. It was way too early to be awake, let alone out of bed and following an irate Logan to the basement. The sun was only beginning to rise. Still, I was curious so I stumbled down the hall to the lifts and followed Logan's voice down to the communications room, cursing myself for not thinking to wear slippers. The metals floors were freezing.

"I want you to lay low for a couple hours. I'm coming up," Logan was saying as I walked in.

"Why, what's wrong?" A girl answered. The screen in front of Logan showed a teenage girl with blonde hair up in a ponytail, talking on a cell. Who on earth was she?

"I dunno yet, just want to check things out."

"Well, alright, but you should know as well as anyone I can look out for myself."

Then it clicked. "Is she that girl who kicked your ass when you went up to Canada for a while?" I asked sleepily as I invited myself in and collapsed in one of the chairs.

Logan rolled his eyes. "Good morning Taylor."

"Morning, yes; good, no."

"Logan?" the girl asked confused.

"Kristie, this is Taylor, one of the X-men. Taylor, this is Kristie."

"You know, generally introductions are made when people are face to face," I said with a small smirk.

"And generally people who are strangers don't butt in on phone calls and talk to people they don't know," Logan retorted.

"I'm too tired to be polite. Besides, it's your own fault for waking me up."

"Anyways," Logan continued talking to Kristie with a roll of his eyes. "I'll see you soon."

"Bye Logan. Bye Taylor. It was nice meeting you."

"You too," I said and then the screen went blank. I quickly turned to Logan and raised an eyebrow. "So do you want to tell me what's going on, or do I have to guess?"

"I think Kristie's in danger, I'm going up to check it out."

"Oh." I considered it and sluggishly followed Logan out of the room and towards the lifts. "Do you want some company?"

I didn't miss his hesitation. "Yeah," he eventually muttered. "Back up could be useful. Bring Fang too; time for him to earn his keep. Meet me at the hangar in fifteen minutes."

I rolled my eyes but nodded in acknowledgement as the doors to the lifts opened, releasing us to the main floor. "Ok." I veered away from him and hurried back towards my room. I pushed open the door, catching it quickly before it could bang against the wall and wake up the others who were lucky enough to still be sleeping. I glanced towards Fang's bed as I rushed to my closet to find my uniform and frowned when I couldn't see him.

I whipped my uniform off its hanger and turned around to see if I could find him as I stripped out of my pajamas. To my chagrin, I found Fang stretched out on my bed with a doggy grin on his face. I rolled my eyes and shrugged on my leather top and zipped up the front.

"Come on Fang, get up. You're coming with us."

He cracked open an eye to look at me, but quickly went back to his sleep. I rolled my eyes again and pulled out my cell. I scrolled through my contacts until I came to Remy's name and pressed he talk button. I pressed the phone to my ear with one hand and struggled to pull on my pants with the other. I didn't really expect Remy to be awake to receive my call, but I would respect his request and let him know when I was going on a mission.

I listened to his phone ring four times and expected it to go to voicemail, but on the fifth rink it abruptly stopped and I heard a groggy voice on the other end.

"'lo?"

"Hey Remy, it's Taylor."

"Chère?" he mumbled, not sounding at all awake. "Somet'in' wrong?"

I smiled softly as his concern as I continued struggling with my pants. Doing up buttons was really hard with one hand. "No, nothing's wrong. I was just calling to let you know I'm going on a mission with Logan. I don't know when I'll be back."

"Where are y' goin'?"

"Canada."

"Canada, eh?" He yawned loudly. "Ok, be safe. Don' do ant'in' stupide."

"I won't," I promised, then swore loudly as my button refused to cooperate.

"Chère? Are y' ok?"

"Fine, my pants just aren't cooperating."

"You're dressin'?" He sounded wide-awake now. "What kind o' panties are you wearin' today, chère?" I could hear the grin in his teasing voice, but I still blushed furiously.

"Never you mind," I retorted.

"Is it pink? Blue? Ooh, black?"

"My underwear is not a conversation topic!"

"Black it is," he said smugly. "Is it a t'ong?"

"Do you even know how uncomfortable those things are? I bet they were made by a man to indulge his own fantasies."

He chuckled. "Bikini briefs, den? Boy shorts? Granny pa—?"

"I'm going now," I said loudly over his suggestions. "I'll call when I get back."

"Au revoir, chère. Be careful." He spoke the last sentence quietly, tenderly. He sounded so vulnerable it made my heart stutter.

"I will," I promised. "Bye, Remy." Quickly I pressed the end button and slid my phone shut. It took me a moment to realize what I was supposed to be doing, and then I was back in motion, doing up my pants and casting an annoyed look at Fang.

"Come on, Fang. You need to get up now. We're leaving soon."

He groaned in response but slowly got to his feet and jumped off the bed as I pulled on my pants. I glanced at my watch and cursed, I didn't have much time left. Quickly I grabbed a hair tie and a pair of black socks, which I shoved into my combat boots to put on when I got to the jet. I raced towards the lifts with Fang at my heels, my bare feet slapping loudly against the cold hardwood floors as I ran. The cold metal floors of the sublevels were even worse. Still, Fang and I made it to the hangar with a minute to spare.

"Hey," I greeted Logan breathlessly as I climbed into the jet and made myself comfortable it the co-pilot's seat and started to pull on my socks and combat boots. "I don't suppose you have something to eat?"

Wordless he tossed me an apple a granola bar, and a water bottle while prepping the jet for take off. I nodded my thanks and broke into the granola bar. The silence that descended on us lasted nearly half the trip before I found the courage to start asking questions.

"So…why do you think that Kristie is in danger?" I asked him quietly.

He didn't answer for a while. I thought he would ignore my question entirely, but he finally spoke up.

"I got a call from someone—a woman—who said that Kristie was in danger. I don't know who it was or why they called."

"You didn't try tracking it?"

He threw me a scathing look. "Of course I tried tracking it. The number was from an untraceable phone. I couldn't get a lock on it."

I nodded thoughtfully. "Do you have any idea who it could have been?"

"None. This could be a trap, a way to lure me out, but if Kristie really is in danger…" he trailed off looking pained.

"You would never forgive yourself if something happened to her?" I guessed quietly.

Logan nodded. "Yeah."

We didn't speak again for the rest of the trip.

After what seemed like forever, Logan finally started our descent and landed in a clearing of some sort of forest of pine trees. Logan pulled up his hood and strode confidently out of the jet and through the trees following a river. I hurried after him so I wouldn't get lost and Fang loped beside me. It wasn't long before we came to a cliff and Logan froze as he came to the edge. He might have said something, but the roar of the waterfall covered it up. Frowning with concern, I stepped up beside him and hissed at the scene below us. A quaint little farmhouse and barn was smoking, the widows broken and the ground torn up in unnatural points and gaps. For the first time I wondered what Kristie's powers were. Now didn't seem the time to ask.

Nervously I bit my lip and glanced at Logan. His jaw was clenched, a low growl rumbling from his chest as he glared down at the scene below our feet. I considered offering some words of comfort, but I didn't know what to say that wouldn't end up just being lies. I couldn't guarantee that everything would be all right, so why would I say anything? Logan would know empty words when he heard them.

Fang, on the other hand, didn't feel any of these compunctions. He padded up to Logan's side and thrust his head under Logan's hand with a whine. Logan's hand automatically scratched behind Fang's ears, but I had a feeling Logan didn't even realize he was doing so.

The snap of branches breaking and leaves rustling warned us that we weren't alone and the three of us whirled around. I had time to register blue skin and red hair before Logan slammed someone into the trunk of a tree, his gloved hands pressing their shoulders into the rough bark. It wasn't until then that I finally got a good look at our intruder, and recognized her from our security footage and Logan's descriptions.

It was the shapeshifter that broke into the mansion. I had never seen her true form, but Logan had described her has a blue-skinned, red haired, yellow-eyed slender woman; and I assumed that description could really only fit one person. Mystique, as Hank's research had revealed, was her name.

"I told you she was in danger," Mystique said tartly, making no outward sign of the pain I knew she must have been feeling from Logan's strong grip and her shoulders and the bark at her back. Her white outfit revealed a lot of skin, though I supposed her backpack would have protected her from the worst of it.

"You're the one that called Logan?" I demanded sharply.

It seemed to me that her eyes flickered over to look at me, but it was impossible to say because her eyes had no pupils. In any case, both adults chose to ignore me.

"Where's Kristie?" Logan growled roughly, his hands clenched around her white top.

"I don't have her," she said calmly. I had to give her points for not panicking at Logan's assault. "But it's pretty obvious who does."

"Really? And who might that be?" I asked.

This time I was almost positive that her eyes flickered over to me. "Weapon-X. That's their chopper down there."

"What do you know about Weapon-X?" Logan demanded, unsheathing his claws and holding them up to her face threateningly. Her eyes narrowed, but she answered willingly enough. It rankled that she was so calm, I wanted to scare her so that she wouldn't try and fight against us. Or maybe it was just my wounded pride that she had beaten me so easily in our previous meeting.

"Just that they're into turning mutants into weapons," Mystique answered.

"And?"

"It's enough to be of concern to Magneto." So she was under Magneto's employ. Interesting. Why would Magneto want her to break into the mansion? And why would she call Logan to warn him about Kristie?

Logan voiced my own question. "If you're workin' for Magneto, why did you call me?"

"Because if anyone can get her back, it's you." Her eyes narrowed. "Though I didn't expect you to bring a friend." Did I detect a hint of jealousy here?

Logan ignored her last sentence. "All right," he said, backing up and letting Mystique go. "We'll handle it." He stalked off through the trees, and after one last glance at Mystique, Fang and I followed him.

"How are you going to track them?" Mystique called at our backs. "They took her by air." I could hear her following us and I scowled heavily at the dirt. I didn't trust her at all, yet she seemed determined to latch on to us. But for what purpose?

"Their craft left a thermal signature, that's all I need," Logan replied tersely. He didn't even bother turning around to face her, and I felt comforted by his obvious disdain. He didn't trust her either.

"If they follow protocol, they'll land at a safe house. Once they leave it, you'll never find them."

"Then you better tell me where the safe house is," Logan growled.

"Not unless I come with you," she murmured seductively.

"No," I snapped, my voice harsh compared to hers. I swung around to face her and pierced her with a hot glare. "Hell no. We are not getting help from one of Magneto's spies. You tell us where this safe house is, we'll rescue Kristie, and you can just go back to Magneto."

"The more time you waste, the less chance you have of getting to Kristie in time."

I opened my mouth to tell her off, but Logan interrupted me.

"Get in."

I whirled to face him, but Logan was already walking into the jet, his back facing me. Smugly, Mystique strutted up the ramp behind him and I followed sullenly with Fang beside me. I settled into the back seat where I could watch her like a hawk and Fang lay down next to me, his eyes also on the blue woman. I was comforted by his vigilance. Between the two of us, we should be able to keep her in line.

Less than an hour later, I could see the X-Force chopper in the windshield, and was rapidly getting closer. Carefully I stood and walked towards the pilots' seats, hanging on to the back of Mystique's chair to keep myself steady in case we had to move fast. A sudden chirping noise made me flinch and look around to see what was wrong.

"They're arming," Mystique reported, eyeing the controls carefully. My stomach twisted nervously, but remained silent as neither Mystique nor Wolverine reacted.

"Aether, for God's sake, sit down and put on a seat belt," Wolverine snapped.

I quickly obeyed the order, just in time for Logan to do some tricky maneuvers to get us out of the way of the fire. I clutched Fang to my body to protect him from getting tossed around and Logan moved. I received a slobbery doggy kiss in return.

"Aw, gross! Fang!" I whined as I carefully wiped off the slobber. I was about to shove him away fro me, when a loud boom caught my attention, and I quickly looked out the window to see the X-Force chopper leaving a large trail of smoke. Logan must have fired on it.

"Can you pilot?" he asked Mystique while unbuckling his seat belt.

She seemed to roll her eyes. "Of course."

"Good. Pick me up later."

I frowned. "Logan, what are you doing?" I demanded as he pulled the lever that opened the door.

"I need some air," was the only response I got before Logan jumped out of the jet and into the chopper.

I swore loudly as I closed the door and then hurried over to Logan's old seat. I buckled in and Fang padded up so he stood between Mystique and I.

"Get behind and below the chopper," I ordered. "We need to see Logan's exit.

Mystique glared at me but did as I said. "Don't order me around, little girl," she snapped.

"Don't call me 'little'," I retorted, no taking my eyes away from the chopper above us.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Are you a big girl now?" she asked mockingly.

I snarled at her, ready to tear her to shreds when a dark form caught my eye. I eyed it for a moment then quickly pointed at it. "It's Logan! Quick, get the jet under him!"

Mystique grunted in response and started to maneuver the jet closer to Logan's position, but she was moving too slow. I bit my lip as Logan's form grew smaller and smaller.

"I thought you said you can fly!"

"I can," Mystique snapped. "He's just falling to fast for me to catch!"

I swore and threw out my hands, trying to see if I could catch him with a wind and slow his descent. It seemed to work a bit, but he was too far away for me to do any good.

"Damnit!"

"Don't worry," the blue woman said calmly. "He'll survive the fall."

I glared at her and Fang voiced his own opinion with a growl. "I know that! But it'll still hurt like hell."

She shrugged. "The best thing we can do now is get to the safe house," she said logically. "He's smart, he'll find his way there eventually."

I thought about it, then grudgingly nodded. She was right. "Fine. Let's go."

We passed the ride in silence. I ate another granola bar that I found stashed next to Logan's chair, giving some to Fang because I couldn't ignore his puppy eyes. I didn't even argue with Mystique about her hiding place for the jet even though it was half a click away from the safe house. I simply followed her lead as she leapt into the smoky warehouse. Pausing only to help Fang into the building.

Once inside I couldn't see a damn thing. Some sort of gas was in the air, making it extremely hard to breathe. I coughed violently for a second then waved my hand, quickly clearing the air with a large gust of wind. I immediately wished I hadn't. Darkly dressed soldiers surrounded Mystique and Wolverine with some sort of taser-rod thing in their hands. Rather than looking worried though, they simply grinned rather evilly.

"Let's make this interesting," Mystique said, her voice changing dramatically as she phased into an exact replica of Wolverine.

I rolled my eyes at her drama, then stomped the floor to begin the fight. Five good-sized boulders rose into the air as I stomped and I punched the air to make them soar through the air, taking out five soldiers. Fang had leapt forward with a lour snarl and was currently engaging two soldiers, and holding his own quite nicely. I threw fireballs at any that tried to pull him away.

Soon the smell of burnt rubber, charred skin and air filled the air, making me sneeze, but all the soldiers were down. And, unfortunately, Kristie was gone. Logan's eyes shifted over to me and Fang to make sure that we were all right, then shifted his gaze to the door where the truck carrying Kristie had gone.

"Where's the Blackbird," Logan demanded as Mystique shifted back to her own form.

"South. In a warehouse half a kilometer away," I answered promptly. "But how are we going to track them?"

"I know where they're going," Mystique said quietly.

I immediately turned on her. "And you didn't tell us this before?" I shouted. I could feel the temperature in the room rising as I started to lose my temper.

Sweat beaded on her forehead, but she didn't back down. "You wouldn't have taken me with you if I had told you before," she pointed out calmly. At our silence she simply nodded. "You're trying to save Kristie, but I have my own orders. Magneto wants these people stopped."

My eyes narrowed. "You care about something," I said confidently. "If you didn't, you wouldn't have called Logan to tell him that Kristie was in danger. Now, lets get back to the jet, we need to get there before they can do anything to her."

We raced all the way back to the jet, making it in just over five minutes. Not a bad time, if I do say so myself. Fang settled in the back while Logan and Mystique sat up front once more. I rummaged around in the stores until I found some water bottles, and then passed them out. Once we were in the air and hydrated, Logan glanced over at Mystique.

"How do you know so much about Weapon X?" he asked quietly. So quietly, I almost couldn't hear him over the roar of the engines.

"Because I was one of them," she answered, just as quietly.

Silently Logan and I listened to her explain her connection to Weapon X, her job, Cornelius, her lover, her escape. I sympathized for her, I really did. But her past didn't change who she was in the present. And right now she was a cold, two timing Acolyte that wouldn't think twice about knocking me out, trussing me up and dragging me to Magneto if that was what he desired. I didn't trust people like that. The only reason I trusted her not to turn on us in this situation was because it was personal for her. Her objectives lined up with ours for the moment. But it wouldn't stay like that forever.

Suddenly, the control panel started cheeping and I saw two missiles coming straight for us. I didn't anyone to tell me what was wrong this time.

"Shit." I strapped myself into my chair and quickly wrapped my arms around Fang to keep him safe. Things were about to get messy. I closed my eyes as Logan violently turned the jet to the side, the missiles just missing us. Their explosion rocked the jet roughly and two more missiles rocketed out of the base in our direction. Logan once again managed to dodge the missiles, and fired his own shots at the base before landing the jet gently on the air pad just outside the base.

Gingerly I let go of Fang and unbuckled myself slowly. My arms ached from holding on to Fan so hard. Slowly I followed Logan and Mystique off the jet, frowning as a tall, blond, hairy man stalked out of the smoking base towards us. Wolverine's snarl was enough to let me know that his guy wasn't even close to being on our side, but the man's next words confirmed it.

"This is as far as you go, runt."

Runt? Did he just call Wolverine, _runt_? Oh lord, he was going to die.

Wolverine unsheathed his claws. "I'll deal with this chump, you guys go look for Kristie."

I nodded. "Fang, stay here and help Logan," I ordered, then took off for the base. I didn't wait to see if Mystique followed.

The base was eerily silent as I entered. There were no blaring alarms, no soldiers running about. Kist silence. I quietly crept along, trying to make as little noise as possible in the metallic floors. I really had no idea where I was going, but I figured if I could find people, I would find Kristie.

Carefully I peered through the glass of a door down a hallway from the main corridor. Dozens of doors were lined up through the hall, giving it the look of a cell block. It seemed like a likely place where they would have put Kristie.

I tried to open the door, but it appeared as though I needed a special key. That is, if I wanted to open the door properly. There were other methods as hand though. Praying that no one would hear the noise, I punched the metal door. With my powers, it gave under my fist, making a good dent in the metal. I placed my hands in the hole and then tore the metal door open as if it were tinfoil instead of steel doors.

Gingerly I stepped through the hole that I made and inspected each of the cells. Most of them held nothing in them, except for one near the end. A small dark form was huddled in the corner furthest from the door. It wasn't Kristie, but she sure looked like she needed help. Without pausing to think, I opened the door to her cell in the same fashion as the previous one and stepped inside. She looked up at me with her big golden eyes through her black, pin straight hair. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her knees, but she didn't look frightened. Not of me anyways.

"Thorton didn't send you, did he?" she asked quietly.

I arched an eyebrow at her husky voice, but slowly shook my head. "Um…no. I actually have no idea who this Thorton character is."

"So you're an intruder?"

I nodded slowly. Her reactions were starting to freak me out. Shouldn't she be happy that I was rescuing her? Maybe she had some sort of Stockholm syndrome? "I suppose some might consider me an intruder."

She slowly got to her feet. Her looked horribly thin, and young and somewhat familiar. I guessed her age to be around 13, maybe not even that. What kind of person would lock up and experiment on a kid? And from Mystique's stories, I assumed that's what they did.

"I'm supposed to kill intruders," she said quietly, and two claws sprang out of each hand. I guess I now know why she looked familiar.

I raised my hands in the air to show my harmlessness. "Easy kid, I'm here to help you."

She glared at me. "I don't need anyone's help!" she snarled, lunging at me, her claws slicing through the air dangerously. I leapt back, out of harms ways and continued to retreat and persuade her to stop and listen to me.

"Do you honestly like being held prisoner?" I demanded. "Do you like being experimented on, tortured, and being treated like a weapon instead of like a human being?"

"That's what I am."

I shook my head violently, then ducked just in time to avoid being beheaded. "You're a kid," I said firmly. "You're human. No one deserves treatment like this. Come with me and I promise that you can be free."

She paused. "Free?" she asked suspiciously.

I winced. Maybe freedom was a bit strong. "Legally, you're still just a kid. Some choices will have to be made by a guardian, someone older than 18 who's willing to look out for you. But you can have more freedom than you do now. Friends, family, a home, music, books, parties, you can get all those things if you come with me."

"I don't need any of those things!" She lunged again and I sore as her claws dug into my belly. They weren't deep wounds, but they bled heavily anyways. I pressed a hand to the cuts and stumbled away, trying even harder to convince her to stop.

"But don't you want them? At least a little? You don't have to be unhappy. You can choose to make a better life for yourself than these losers here did for you." I saw the indecision in her face and decided on a new tactic. "Look, just come check it out. If you really hate what we have to offer, I promise won't stop you from leaving us. Xavier's has an open door policy, and the door opens both ways."

"How do I know I can trust you?"

"You can't," I said honestly. "You just have to take a chance."

"X-23." A cold voice came from the doorways, and the kid and I both turned to stare at a tall, bald, spectacled man. "She is an intruder. Kill her."

X-23—what kind of monsters were these, that gave a number to a kid instead of a name—looked uneasily between the man and me. My stomach burned from the wounds, and I could feel warm, wet blood oozing down my front, staining my uniform. I needed to offer her something that she would never get here, something she would want.

"We can give you a name," I said quietly. "A real name, not a number."

Something shifted behind her eyes, and slowly, but surely, she turned so her back was to me and she was staring down Baldy. I grinned. Score for Taylor!

"X-23, attack!" the man ordered again, frowning as the girl did nothing.

"Sorry, bub," I snarled. "She's with me." I thrust my hand out, palm out, and sent a strong wind in his direction. He soared through the air and hit the wall with an uncomfortable crunch. Quickly he stumbled to his feet and raced away as a clear voice was heard over the intercom.

"System overload in three minutes."

"That doesn't sound good," I muttered. I turned to the kid and beckoned for her to follow. "Come on, we have to find my friends."

She frowned and followed me. "Negative. We should escape the building."

"Not without my friends," I said firmly. "Look, worst scenario, the building blows and we're inside. I can protect us from the blast."

She eyed me critically, taking in my wounds. "Are you certain?"

I shrugged. "Fairly. Listen, can you hear any fighting?"

She stood stock still for a moment, closing her eyes in order to concentrate. Finally she nodded. "This way." She led me down a few corridors until we came to a larger corridor. I quickly took in the situation. Mystique was down, but a large container holding Kristie was open. Hopefully she would wake up soon. Thorton and his buddies were escaping Fang and Wolverine were facing down a guy wearing yellow armour whose hand was glowing purple.

"System overload in thirty seconds."

Suddenly Logan lunged forward, ducking under Yellow Man's arm, grabbing a gun and firing at the man's back. I had no idea what the gun was or what it did, but it flashed with blue light and the man was knocked out. And, ironically, at that moment Kristie woke up.

"What's going on?" she asked feebly, rubbing her head as she sat up.

"System overload in ten seconds."

"No time to explain," I snapped. "Kristie, your powers manipulate earth, right?" She nodded. "Good. You need to help me protect us from the blast. Layers and layers of rock and hold it together. Everyone gather in close. The less rock Kristie and I have to use, the better."

No one questioned me; they simply did as I told them. Quickly the five of us, plus Yellow Man's body and Fang were huddled together and Kristie and I were manipulating the earth around us to create a shield between us and the blast.

The ground shook beneath our feet as the base exploded around us. Krstie and I visibly flinched and sweat poured down our brows with the effort it took to keep the rock in place. It hurt like hell. My head throbbed, my stomach gushed blood, and I could feel myself beginning to lose consciousness, but I gritted my teeth and kept going. There was no way in hell I was dying here. Not with Remy waiting for me back home, not with my promise unfulfilled with the kid.

Finally the earth stopped shaking and the heat died down. Carefully Kristie and I lowered the rock, letting fresh air pour into our shelter and the others finally were able to breathe. Stars dotted my vision, and I blinked slowly to get rid of them while I swayed on my feet. A small body ducked beneath my arm to keep my upright and slowly I turned my head to look at the kid.

"Thanks," I grunted, pressing a hand to my belly to stop the bleeding.

"Aether."

I forced my head up to look at Logan who was cradling Kristie in his arms. "Status?"

"I'm bleeding."

His lips twitched. "I can see that. Mystique, help me get everyone to the jet."

Slowly and painfully Mystique and the kid helped me to the jet where they laid me down on one of the makeshift beds. They must have found out that the kid was trained in first aid, because after they got Kristie and the Yellow man settled in some chairs, Logan and Mystique went out to talk, leaving the kid to bandage my wounds.

"Hey, kid, can you pass me the phone over there?" I mumbled, hissing as she poured some hydrogen peroxide on my wounds to clean them. She frowned at me.

"I'm not a kid," she growled, but passed me the phone nonetheless.

"Sorry," I muttered. "You need to choose a name I can call you then."

She cocked her head. "Like what?"

I shrugged, then immediately winced. Ok, Taylor, you need to stop moving now. "I dunno. Anything you want. Alice, Susan, Leanne, Jennifer, Morgana, Denise, Amy…personally I've always like the name Laura."

"Laura," she repeated slowly, as if tasting the name. Slowly she nodded. "I like it."

I grinned weakly, then swore as she doused my wounds again. "Jeez kid, give a girl some warning!"

She glared at me. "Laura," she corrected.

"Right, sorry. Laura."

"You all right back there, Taylor?" Logan called as he closed the jet's door.

"Oh yeah, peachy keen," I said sarcastically. At least I tried to be sarcastic. My voice was kind of weak.

He walked over the Laura and I, inspecting her handiwork and nodding approvingly. "Good job, kid."

She glared up at him. "My name is Laura," she snarled.

His eyebrows shot up in surprise, then looked at me. I shrugged.

"That's the name she chose," I said by way of explanation.

He shrugged. "Ok. Taylor, is there anything you need?"

"Um…yeah." I weakly held up the phone the Laura had retrieved for me. "Can you call Remy for me? He'll want to know how I'm doing and…I'd like him to be at the mansion when I get there," I admitted quietly.

Logan gave me a look and shook his head. "Ain't no way in hell I'm going to talk to Gumbo and tell him that his girl is injured. Besides, he'll want to hear your voice."

"I can't guarantee that I'll stay conscious long enough to reassure him I won't die," I argued.

"Then Laura can pick up where you left off. Now, I have to get us back home." And with that he walked up to the cockpit to begin lift off.

"Jerk," I muttered under my breath. With a lot more thinking that it should have taken—I blamed it on my injured state—I dialed Remy's number while the kid continued bandaging my wounds. He picked up after two rings.

"Bonjour?"

"Hey, Remy, it's me."

"Chère?" His voice grew panicked as he heard my weak voice. "What's wrong? Where are you?"

"Calm down, I'm fine."

"I don' believe you."

I rolled my eyes. "Fine, I'll live. Logan and I are on our way home, we should be at the Institute in a little over an hour." I bit my lip and hesitated before continuing. "If you can, it would be nice to see you there." God, I sounded like a needy little child. But in all honesty, I kind of felt like one. I really wanted Remy to be by my side when I got to the mansion. To my horror, I could feel tears welling up behind my eyes and I sniffled slightly, trying to keep them at bay.

"O' course, chère," he said tenderly. "I'll be dere. Jus' 'ang on, ok? I'll see you soon."

I smiled slightly. "Ok. Bye Remy."

"Bye chère."


	16. Hunting Grounds

_Good lord it's been a long time since I've posted. In my defense, IB's been kicking my ass and I've been busy trying to survive. Anyways, I'm procrastinating from studying for exams, so here you go._

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men __ or any associated characters. Nor do I own __The Princess Bride._

**Chapter 16: Hunting Grounds**

"He didn't fall? Inconceivable!"

I quoted the words along with the actor and snickered at the large, flat screen TV in Remy's living room. _The Princess Bride_ was a classic and one of my favorite movies. I could practically quote the entire movie by heart, but I still enjoyed watching it.

I felt Remy's chest rumble under my head as he chuckled. "You really like dis movie, non?" His right arm was loosely wrapped around me—not too tight in order to keep my PTSD under control—as I reclined on his couch, practically laying on top of him as he sat at the end with his feet propped up on a foot stool. A soft black blanket was draped over me and I snuggled into him for extra warmth as I grinned up at him.

"What ever gave you that impression?" I asked sarcastically.

He grinned cheekily at me. "Je ne sais pas. Maybe it was de way y' almos' killed me when I suggested we watch _Terminator_ instead?"

I blushed and ducked my head. All right, so maybe I had gotten a little over zealous in picking a movie, but come on, I loved this movie.

Remy laughed and kissed the top of my head. "I'm jus' kiddin', chère. Y' know I'd watch anyt'ing y' want to."

"That's because I have you wrapped around my little finger," I teased, a little smugly.

"Dat's true." His solemn tone surprised me and drew my eyes back up towards him, and my breath caught in my throat. Slowly his head bent down towards my own and his left hand came up to support my head as I unconsciously leaned up towards him. His soft lips gently caressed mine, asking if I was ok with this. In response I pressed my lips more firmly against his, and ran a free hand up to tangle in his soft hair.

I felt his tongue against my lips requesting entrance, but I simply smirked and teasingly kept them closed. I felt his chest rumble with a small growl and he nipped at my bottom lip and caressed the sliver of skin at my waist that my shirt had ridden up to reveal. I gasped at the sudden heat that coursed through my body and then moaned as his tongue slipped through my lips to massage my own.

I'm not sure what triggered it, but suddenly, instead of the heat and passion that had been coursing through my body, I felt the cold surge of fear. My skin crawled beneath Remy's fingers and I froze, ready to lash out at the person closest to me. Remy—bless his heart—immediately noticed my change in demeanor and abruptly stopped his passionate assault and pulled back. His grip around me loosened but didn't fall away, his eyes boring into mine as if to peer right into my soul, concern and wariness on his face.

"Taylor?" he questioned gently.

The use of my real name pulled me from that petrified state. I think that was the first time he ever used my real name. I forced myself to relax and gave him a weak smile.

"Sorry."

He shook his head firmly and pulled me towards his chest in a loose embrace. His strong arms wrapped around me, making me feel safe and chasing away the phantom grips of the panic attack.

"Don' apologize," he said firmly. "S'not your fault."

I grunted into his chest. "I still feel bad."

He tensed beneath me. "Why?"

I shrugged awkwardly, still pressed against his chest. "You deserve a girl that doesn't flip out every time you kiss her. And I know it must frustrate you, especially with your experience…" Over the past month I've come to realize Remy's reputation, and he once admitted to me in no uncertain terms that he was very…experienced when it came to women.

Remy pulled me away from his chest and stared at me. I tried to look away from his piercing eyes, but I couldn't.

"Chère, does my past bodder you?"

I squirmed uncomfortably and I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks. "No…"

He sighed; he knew I was lying. "Chère. I can' change my past. I won' deny I've 'ad good experiences wit' women, but I woul' nevah cheat on you or pressure you into doin' somet'ing you aren' ready for. Y' got hurt, chère. You need t' heal. I'll wait."

I smiled tenderly at him and reached up to brush his hair away from his eyes. "I know," I murmured. "I just wish I could handle a make out session without freaking out on you. I know you don't mind," I said hurriedly when he opened his mouth to protest. "But I'm frustrated with myself. I enjoy it too you know."

He smirked cockily. "O' course y' do. Dat's because you're kissin' _me_, chère." I snorted and smacked him over the head. He laughed and caught my wrist before I could do any more damage and pulled me forward for another kiss.

Suddenly, there was a loud pounding on the door, startling Remy and I apart. Whoever was on the other side sounded angry. We shared a glance and quietly got off the couch. I crept over to the wall by the door out of immediate view and Remy slipped over to the door, a deck of cards in hand.

"Who dere?" he called playfully.

"Open the door, Gumbo," Logan's voice growled on the other side of the door. I immediately glanced over at the clock and then winced. It was 2:30. Over an hour past my curfew. Remy obviously realized that too because he quickly opened the door with a large, goofy smile on his face.

"Wolvie!" he cried enthusiastically. "Quel suprise!" His eyes then caught sight of Laura who was standing right behind Logan, looking slightly bored. "An' you brough' Laura. Nice t' see you petite."

"Remy." She nodded her greeting.

"Taylor," Logan growled, ignoring Remy and fixing me with an intimidating scowl. I swallowed nervously and grinned at him sheepishly.

"Hey Logan. You know you could have called."

"What? And ruin the surprise?"

"We were worried," Laura interjected.

I sighed, feeling guilty. "I'm sorry. Remy and I were watching movies and didn't realize how much time had past. Honestly."

He grunted. "Next time set an alarm. Lets go."

Quickly I grabbed my coat and hurried out the door behind Logan and Laura. I turned to say a quick good-bye to Remy, but to my surprise he had pulled on his trench coat and was locking the door behind him.

"Going somewhere?" I asked curiously. What on earth was he going to do this time of night?

He flashed me a boyish grin that made my knees wobble. "Jus' seein' my girl out."

I grinned at him and wrapped my arm around his waist as he pulled me to his side and we walked down leisurely to the main floor despite Logan's impatient growling. Once outside, Logan stalked over to his bike, Laura behind him, but I paused.

"Um…Logan?"

"What?" he demanded harshly.

"How do you expect me to get home?"

He glanced at his bike—which he probably took because it was faster than the van—and swore. There was only enough room for two people.

"Easy now, Wolvie," Remy said with a grin. "I can take Taylor 'ome. We'll even follow righ' behind you."

Logan looked like he was ready to pulverize Remy for even suggesting the idea, but nodded. He knew that it was really the only option.

"Hurry," he grunted.

Remy smugly led me to another bike a little ways down the street, a cocky swagger in his step. I shook my head with some amusement and waited for him to get settled before climbing on behind him. I wrapped my arm tightly around his muscular body and pressed myself firmly to his back, my body thrumming with content.

I didn't really pay attention to anything else besides the heat of Remy's body as we roared down the streets behind Logan and Laura. Maybe if I had, I would have noticed the tell tale signs of attack before it was too late. As it was, I only noticed something was wrong when I went hurtling through the air, my ears ringing with a loud explosion.

I hit the asphalt hard. My skin scraping roughly against the street and my head cracking against a curb. Tears sprang unbidden to my eyes, and I tried to blink them away so I could get up and help fight, but darkness was closing in. The last thing I saw were these really ugly looking creatures with big ass guns, and a blonde with six arms, then I lost consciousness in a swirl of blue, white and black.

~ *~

Next thing I knew, the air was rushing past my face and when I cracked an eye open, the ground was getting alarmingly close. I yelped and acted instinctively, thrusting out a hand to make the air cushion my fall. My descent slowed dramatically until I was about a meter from the ground. My control over the wind lapsed and I fell to the ground with a quiet thud, jarring my body and making my headache worse.

I groaned and pressed a hand to the rather large bump on my head. My head thumped in time with my pulse and I was bleeding from the road rash, reminding me of the accident that had just taken place, and I hurriedly looked around. Trees and grass surrounded me, not exactly the street that I last remembered. Slowly I pushed myself into a sitting position, still clutching my head and trying to figure out where I was.

A sudden flash in the sky drew my attention and within a whirlwind of blue and white light, another body appeared, falling towards the earth. I quickly recognized Remy's trench coat and used the wind to control his landing. I set him down softly on the grass a couple meters away from me, then crawled to his side despite the agonizing pain.

"Remy?"

"Chère?" He sat up and looked over at me, his red and black eyes looking relieved and concerned at the same time. He hurried the rest of the distance to my side and gathered me up in his arms. "Are y' alrigh'? Are y' hurt?" His hands roamed over my body to find any scratches before I could even answer.

"I'm fine," I insisted automatically, and then winced as his fingers found my goose egg and the numerous road burns. "Well, I will be," I defended myself at Remy's accusing glance.

He opened his mouth to retort, but the same whirlwind that had deposited Remy here appeared again. Remy and I watched as two forms, a red and a blue one, fell to the ground with a heavy thud. I winced, mentally berated myself for not catching them, then allowed Remy to help me to my feet. He positioned himself so he stood in front of me protectively and I peered around him to look at the newcomers.

A brunette dressed completely in a skintight red leather outfit complete with cape and odd-looking headset quickly scrambled to her feet looking really pissed. Her companion was blue. And I don't mean he was wearing a blue outfit, but _he_ was blue. And he had a tail. That appearance actually rang a bell…Nightcrawler?

"Who are you?" The girl demanded roughly. Red energy appeared on her fists and she looked ready to blow us to smithereens.

"Who de hell are you?" Remy retorted. He pulled out a deck of cards, charged one and held it out threateningly over his shoulder, ready to throw.

"Hey!" I said, pushing myself out from behind Remy, holding my hands out to stop any violence. "Can we all just get along? We're all in the same boat here!"

"And why should we trust you?"

I scowled at the girl. "Because I would never harm a fellow X-man!" I declared hotly, fixing my gaze on Nightcrawler.

He stepped forward, surprise on his face. "Do I know you?"

"Y' know 'im?" Remy asked at the same time.

I shrugged. "I don't really _know_ him, but I've heard of him. I'm Taylor, or Aether if you prefer. I'm the X-men's newest recruit. This is…" I hesitated, unsure what he wanted them to know him as.

"Gambit," Remy filled in gruffly, a scowl heavy in his voice. I rolled my eyes. He really was over protective sometimes.

"I am Kurt Vagner, or de amazin' Nightcrawler, and dis iz Vanda."

"Scarlet Witch," she corrected coolly. Ah, Magneto's daughter, joy. Kurt and I ignored her.

"Do you know vhere ve are?" Kurt asked.

I shook my head and looked back at Remy. He also shook his head. "I don't know anything," I admitted. "Not even who captured us."

"It vas Spiral. I recognized her vhen she took me."

"Who is dat?" Remy asked intently.

"A blonde voman vith six arms and a Viking hat. She vas de pirate dat vas kidnapping de mutants on their vay to Genosha."

"She was de one who attacked us," Remy confirmed. "Along wit' some really ugly friends."

"That doesn't help us find out where we are," Wanda said.

"Or why we are here," I added.

"Welcome my esteemed guests!" A voice boomed over us. We all jumped in surprise, looked up and winced. Above our heads was a hologram of the most corpulent body I had ever had the misfortune to see. Dozens of wires stuck out of the back of his head, and various metal clips held the blubber out of his mouth and eyes, exposing the pink flesh beneath his green skin.

"Mon Dieu, what is dat _t'ing_?" Remy muttered beneath his breath.

"I don't think you want to know," I muttered in return.

"Rejoice! For you all have been specially chosen to complete in this week's exciting episode of _Mojo's Hunting Grounds_!"

"You abducted me for some game?" Wanda screeched, sounding both insulted and indignant. "Are you out of your mind?"

Kurt grabbed her arm to stop her from speaking further. "Don't provoke him," he hissed.

"After all, what an exciting opportunity to test your mutant mettle? And in return, all I ask, is that you survive for at least 52 minutes, for commercial breaks," Mojo continued speaking as though he couldn't hear the interruption.

"Do you have any idea who I am?" Wanda demanded. This time I was the one that tried to shut her up.

"Be quiet!" I hissed quietly. "If he doesn't know you're Magneto's daughter, then you shouldn't tell him! He could find a way to use it against you!"

"Absolutely," Mojo said smoothly. "I know exactly who you are." I cringed expecting the worst. "You two are damsels! The destruction, the drama, for our next riveting episode!"

We all watched in horror and disbelief as a holographic image of the commercial staring Kurt against the pirates played above our heads. There were even a few clips of Remy fighting against Spiral. To Wanda's and my chagrin, we were only mentioned as the "love of their lives" of Remy and Kurt, and they had Wanda's name wrong.

"The name's _Scarlet_ Witch you stupid freak!" she howled.

"And I'm _not_ a damsel in distress!" I added hotly.

Mojo continued on as if we hadn't spoken. "Camera's are rolling, lights, and action!"

We winced as a herd of floating spheres—which I assumed were the cameras—floated around us, and quickly ducked as those ugly monsters from before started shooting at us. Quickly Kurt grabbed the three of us, and teleported us a fair distance away. Unfortunately the landing was rather messy and we all tumbled down to the ground. I hissed as the fall aggravated my injuries, and added grass stains to my growing list of minor troubles.

Remy groaned next to me. "Homme, give a guy some warnin' next time."

"Sorry," Kurt apologized.

Wanda only scowled. "I tell him I don't need protecting and then you go protecting me. How does that make me look?"

"It's not protecting, it's helping," Kurt said weakly. "There's a difference."

We all jumped to our feet as white blasts hit some trees not too far away, making them fall over. The enemy was approaching.

"Let's get out of here!" I called, and we all raced in the opposite direction.

"Why run when we can fight?" Wanda demanded.

"Because den we're only givin' him wha' he wants," Remy said. "D'you really wanna fight for his entertainment?"

She scowled. "Mutants being hunted for sport is exactly the sort of thing my father fights against."

I somehow managed to snort at this was still running. "And _we_ don't?" I demanded harshly. "Don't be so high and mighty princess. Your father fights humans hunting mutants. I don't think Mojo is either."

Wanda opened her mouth to retort, but we all got blown off our feet when one of our attackers burst from the trees, firing his gun. Somehow Remy managed to throw three well-aimed cards at him, but exploded as they hit some sort of shield.

"Ah, crap," I muttered.

"Kurt, can you disarm him?" I asked.

"If you can distract him."

Quickly I slammed my fists into the ground, making it shake beneath his feet. Our attacker stumbled around, trying to keep his balance, and Kurt immediately teleported over to the man, grasping the gun with his feet and hands. But as soon as he touched it, electricity crackled and the force field flickered. Kurt screamed, let go quickly and teleported to Wanda's side who helped him back on his feet.

"I can't touch him!" Kurt said desperately, trying to duck away and protect Wanda from the flurry of blasts coming towards them. Remy tried to distract the man by sending a flurry of charged objects at him, but the man didn't pause, merely redirected his blaster and shot Remy. I watched in horror as Remy's limp body went flying through the air and into the trees out of sight.

Oh my god. Remy!

I could hear Kurt swearing in German before abruptly cutting off as though teleporting away, but I was too busy to look, already automatically moving on to plan b. With a loud, angry snarl, I thrust my hand out towards the man, a stream of fire shooting out to envelop him with a loud roar. His screams pierced the air, and I winced though I didn't stop the fire. Instead I made it blaze hotter, trying to stop him from screaming quickly.

After a moment, his screams stopped and I slowly let the fire die away. On the burnt grass, there was a blackened corpse with a mangled gun whose mouth was wide open in a silent, eternal scream. The ungodly scent of burnt flesh and hair reached my nose and the bile rose in my throat.

"Oh god," I groaned and turned away, retching into the bushes. I had just killed somebody. Granted, he wasn't human and he had almost killed my friends—I refused to believe that Remy was dead—but that didn't make it any better. My whole body shaking, I stumbled in the direction where Remy had flown. Tears blurred my vision and I gulped at the air and my actions grew more and more desperate as I couldn't find him.

"Remy?" I called, my voice shaking and hoarse. "Remy? Remy!"

A low moan reached my ears, and I quickly turned to it, finally making our Remy's body among the bushes. I stumbled over to him, rolling over his body so I could get a look at his wound.

It wasn't pretty. A large hole exposed the organs of Remy's body. Charred flesh outlined it and blood was seeping everywhere. I almost threw up again, but I controlled myself and pressed a hand to Remy's cheek.

"Remy? Remy, can you hear me?"

He groaned again, and this time I could hear the wet gurgle beneath it and the rattle of his breath. "Chère?" He tried to lift his hand to touch me, but could only get it up about halfway. Carefully I grasped it and pulled it up to my face so his hand was cupping my cheek.

"Don't you die on me, Remy LeBeau" I whimpered. "It's not your time."

He made some strange noises that sounded vaguely like a chuckle. "Ain't your call…t' make…chère," he said between gasps.

"Shut up, Gumbo. You aren't allowed to die until I say so!" Tears were pouring down my cheeks and I tried to wipe them away, but I only succeeded in soaking my hands. In frustration I gave up and just let my hands rest on his body, as though to ground him.

"Ahh, Taylor. Don'…talk foolish. Dis is…my time."

"No!" I denied vehemently. "No it's not!"

"Au revoir…mon coeur. I…love you."

My heart stuttered at those words. I knew he had deep feelings for me, but neither of us had ever spoken about love. It had always seemed like too big of a concept for me to grasp before. But now…

I swallowed thickly. "I love you too."

He smiled that boyish grin that I loved so much, and let his head fall back, and his body started to relax.

"No," I whispered. "No, don't leave me." My hands pressed against his wound, as though some pain could wake him up again, and suddenly my hands started to tingle. I frowned briefly and looked down, almost choking when I saw they were glowing.

No, wait, the water from my tears on my hands was glowing and…slowly healing Remy? I bit my lip, it was hard to tell with my hands covering the wound, but it seemed less extensive. But it wasn't working fast enough, Remy's breathing was getting shallower. I needed more water.

Quickly I pulled one hand away and gestured harshly at a nearby tree, pulling the water from it forcibly. The tree turned to dust, but now I had plenty of water. I quickly pressed my hand against Remy's wound and imagined that tingly sensation again, sighing in relief as the glow returned.

I don't know how long I sat there, glowing hands pressed to Remy's side, praying that this would work. It felt like eternity. But when Remy's wound was completely healed beneath my hands I gently pulled away and let the excess water flow to the ground. With trembling hands I leaned over him and pressed a hand to his face. I couldn't feel him breathing.

"Remy?" I asked, my voice breaking horribly.

Oh god. I was too late.

Suddenly he gasped, sat up quickly and his eyes flew open, looking about wildly. My relief was instantaneous, making my muscles go weak. With a loud sob of relief I flung myself into his arms and clutched him tightly. His arms tightened around me instantly and for the first time in hours I started to feel my world start functioning again.

"Sh, chère. I'm alrigh'," he murmured into my hair as he rocked me back and forth.

"Don't ever do that to me again!" I sobbed into his chest, my fingers clutching at his clothing.

He chuckled. "I'll do my best."

With a strangled moan, I pulled away slightly and slammed my lips to his, my arms wrapping tightly around his neck. My brain still refused to believe that he was with me, I need to feel him, needed to know that this wasn't a dream. Remy responded eagerly to my desperate motions. His arms were tight around me, and one of his hands tangled in my hair as he angled my head so he could deepen the kiss.

Slowly our desperate motions quieted and we started to pull away. Remy pressed several shorter, softer kissed to my lips before we stopped and pressed our foreheads together, basking in each other's presence. Finally he spoke.

"Where's Blue an' Red?"

I snickered, and wiped away some of the lingering tears on my cheeks. "It's _Scarlet_, remember?"

I couldn't see it, but I knew he was rolling his eyes. "What's de difference? You femmes get worked up over de silliest t'ings."

"Maybe. And I don't know where they are. I lost track of them while…fighting…that guy."

"Well, let's go an' find dem."

Carefully we got to our feet and walked to where we last saw Wanda and Kurt. Unfortunately all we found was the corpse. I swallowed thickly when I saw it and deliberately turned away. I heard Remy inspect the body for a moment, then his hands came to rest on my shoulders.

"Taylor—"

"I don't want to talk about it," I snapped then winced at my tone. "Not now," I added more gently.

"Ok. Let's start lookin' for—"

He was suddenly cut off by an alarm. Automatically we turned back to back and studied our surroundings. There was silence for a long time, then we could hear snapping twigs from the south. We turned towards and noise, expecting to find more of the hulking, big monsters, but instead, the petit, lithe form of Laura jumped into the clearing. Only it wasn't our Laura. This one was sporting equipment not unlike that of Mojo, and her eyes were white. She wasn't the one in control any more, but she was just as lethal.

"Merde," Remy muttered.

"Now what?" I asked him in a heated whisper.

"Well, we coul' attack."

"We can't risk hurting her!"

"She has 'ealing factor! Anyt'ing we dish out ain't gonna 'urt 'er much!"

"Then there's no real point in attacking, is there?"

"Y' got a better idea?"

I thought furiously for a second as Laura slowly advanced and we backed away. I was about to give into Remy's idea, when suddenly, inspiration struck. "Ok, I've got a plan. All we've need to do is—MOVE!"

Remy and I leapt out of the way as Laura lunged at us with a furious snarl. I could feel the wind as her claws flashed over my face—that was a close call. I rolled to my feet instantly, and prepared to leap away again, but Laura was chasing after Remy, leaving me to implement the plan. Unfortunately, she was moving around too much for me to do it.

"Remy! Try to keep her in one place for a moment!" I called.

"What do you expect me t' do? Ask 'er nicely t' stand still?" he asked sarcastically as he jumped out of the way of her claws.

I rolled my eyes. "Just make her stumble or something. I just need her to stand still for a moment, over wise you'll get sucked into my trap too."

He grunted in acknowledgement and performed an elegant flip over Laura in another spectacular dodge. Ok, not a very appropriate moment, but I couldn't help but admire his graceful body in that moment, even as he twirled around to face Laura and with a long metal pole that seemed to appear out of no where, he smashed it into her stomach like a baseball bat. I gaped as Laura was sent flying off her feet, a couple meters away then slowly climbing to her feet, with a growl.

Now.

I slammed my fists into the ground and twisted, targeting the ground beneath her feet. I saw a vague look of surprise as suddenly the ground that she was standing on suddenly acquired the viscosity of mud, and she slipped into the ground un to her chin quickly. I hardened it before her head could submerge, then with a heave, I pulled out the chunk of ground that she contained in a perfect cylindrical shape to it rest on its side in front of me. Laura snarled and thrashed her head as she tried to get away, but the hardened rock wouldn't budge.

Remy whistled and pressed the button on his telescopic bo staff and put it away. "Very nice, chère. Now what?"

I shrugged. "Do you think that the machine on her head will stop working if we smash it?"

"C'est possible," he said slowly. "Mais, it also migh' cause a power surge dat coul' cause some brain damage. I dunno if she coul' 'eal from dat."

"Danm it," I swore. "Well, let's find Wanda and Kurt."

"What about de petite 'ere?"

I shrugged. "I'll flatten the ground if you push."

He rolled his eyes teasingly. "Oh yeah, make me do all de hard work!"

"Yep," I agreed cheerfully. "C'mon. Let's go."

We hadn't gone very far when suddenly, in a haze of sulfur and red smoke, Wanda and Kurt teleported on top of me. I grunted as the air whooshed out of my lungs as their weight pushed me to the ground, and I suddenly found myself face planted in the grass. It didn't take long for them to get off me, and soon I was able to breathe again.

"Careful!" Remy growled as he helped me to my feet.

"Sorry," Kurt apologized. "I didn't mean for zat to happen."

"It's fine," I said a bit weakly. "We were just looking for you anyways. We have a bit of a problem."

His yellow eyes looked a bit surprised. "You ran into Logan too?"

Remy and I exchanged a glance. "Um…no," I said at last. "We found Laura." I gestured to the girl who was still contained in the block of stone.

Kurt frowned. "Who is zat?"

"Logan's female clone. He doesn't happen to be runny around trying to kill you with some sort of mind control device on his head, does he?"

They both nodded grimly. "Yes."

"Merde," Remy said again. "Now what?"

"I think I found a vay out," Kurt said. "Just beyond those trees."

We all hurried over to the clearing, Remy rolling Laura around as I made a path, and Kurt pointed at a circular metal door.

"There. It is the only exit that I could find."

I grinned. "Sweet. Let's open it."

He shook his head quickly. "Ve can't. It is jammed."

"Not a problem," I smirked, and sauntered over to the metal door. I cracked my knuckles in preparation, then slammed my fingers into the door. It moved like lead beneath my fingers, molding precisely how I wanted it to. I started to pull it away, when suddenly there was a loud roar like a bunch of water falls, as we were all getting wet.

"Where's dis water coming from?" Remy demanded.

"Ve're undervater," Kurt explained. "Mojo must be pulling the plug on this episode."

Suddenly, there was another crash and snarl, and Logan jumped into the clearing behind us. Ah, crap.

"Chère, you need t' work faster!" Remy called as he whipped out his bo staff and turned to face Logan.

"You guys try and disable the devices on Logan and Laura," I called. "I'll get the door open."

"Can you make us a platform to work on? It's abou' t' get really wet in 'ere, an' we don' wan' Laura t' drown."

"No problem." With a grunt of effort, I raised the clearing on a large pillar of stone, giving them a chance to work unhindered. I then turned back to the door, even as the water started rising up to my shoulders. Dang, this tank sure could fill when there were a lot of holes in it.

Quickly I plunged my hands back into the door, and started tearing it apart piece by piece. It was slow work, especially since I had to cement my feet into the ground in order not to get sucked into the hole. It didn't help, that I had to hold my breath and continue on underwater in order to continue. Eventually I managed to get the door completely out of the way, and using my powers, I propelled myself to the surface as fast as I could in order to save my aching lungs.

I gasped for breath as soon as my head broke the surface, and I choked a bit on the water and tiredly swam over to the platform I made where the others were waiting. It wasn't very far out of the water any more, and Remy was waiting to help pull me up. I shivered in the cold air, and wrapped my arms around myself to try and keep warm as well as cover up a bit. I just had to wear a white T-shirt today, didn't I?

"Did you guys managed to get the machines off?" I asked, as Remy wrapped his trench coat around my shoulders. And yes, I admit, I took a moment to admire his biceps that were shown off spectacularly in his shirt.

"Oui," Remy confirmed. "You just need t' let Laura out o' her prison."

"Oh, right." I blushed, and punched the stone cylinder. It crumbled into tiny pieces, and Laura's unconscious but device free body fell to the ground.

"Did you get the door open?"

"Of course. It's waiting for us to go through."

Kurt grinned. "Vunderbar. Vanda and Taylor, if you could get Laura do there, Gambit and I vill take Logan."

I nodded. "Fair enough. Let's go."

Wanda and I picked up Laura and positioned ourselves so each of her arms were over our shoulders and one of our arms wrapped around her waist. We each took a deep breath and dove into the water. It didn't take a lot of effort on our part to get to the door. The suction of water draining into it forced us along nicely to and through it. Eventually, however, we found ourselves at another dead end. Another stupid metal door.

I swam over to it and thumped a fit against it gently, just trying to find a weak point. Finding one near the hinges, I punched it as hard as I could, and coupled with the force of the water behind me, the door flew of its hinges and we flew into a large metal room, gasping for air. Somehow, the water drained away, and we were all left on the metal, recovering from the salty bath. My cuts and road rash stung as all get out and I wanted nothing more than just to law there for all eternity, but the sounds of fighting pulled me to my feet.

I got up just in time to see Laura and Logan easily chopping Mojo's…legs I suppose…off and threatening to decapitate him if he didn't let go of Kurt. Remy was holding the lady I assumed was Spiral.

"Let him go, Tubbo, or you'll be counting a few more holes in your head," Logan growled. Laura emphasized their point by pressing her claws a little more firmly into his many chins. Immediately Mojo dropped Kurt to the ground.

"Spiral!" he called desperately.

Quickly, the lady threw her head back against Remy's nose, forcing him to let her go. Then she raced towards her employer, both disappearing in a swirl of blue and white.

"This calls for a sequel!" Mojo called out just as they disappeared. I shuddered at the thought, and hurried over to Remy's side as the others inspected Kurt.

"Remy, are you ok?"

"She broke mon nez!" he cried out thickly through the blood, somehow managing to sound insulted.

"Ok, just sit down, I'll deal with it."

"Chère—"

"Sit!" I insisted. Obediently he sat on the floor, and I crouched down in front of him. After tugging his hands away, I inspected the damage carefully. His nose was crooked and blood was still running out of it. It looked like it hurt like hell.

"This is going to hurt," I warned him.

He grimaced. "Jus' do it."

"On the count of three. One…three." I launched into action. I straightened his nose as best as I could, coated my hand in some water, and then healed him just like I had earlier. When it seemed ready, I stopped and inspected my handiwork. Not too bad. I grinned. "There. All done."

He glowered at me through his fringe of hair. "Nice countin'."

I clucked my tongue and using the edge of my soaked T-shirt to wipe away the blood. "Don't be such a baby. Your nose is fine now. And your welcome."

Remy smiled and gently clasped my hands in his, stopping my movements. "Merci," he said softly. He leaned in and kissed me gently. My heart fluttered and I eagerly responded to his movements, when someone cleared their throat above us. Quickly we pulled apart to look up at our four companions.

"Come on, lovebirds," Logan growled. "We have a ship to find."

It took surprisingly little time to find Spiral's ship and navigate it to the surface near Genosha to drop off Wanda. Remy and I had hardly enough time to explore the ship, in an attempt to find extra clothes so we could change out of our wet ones. Still, somehow Remy found enough time to talk while we explored.

"You ready t' talk abou' dat man?"

I looked away from him, pretending to examine a lock. "What's there to talk about?" I asked coldly. "I killed him. End of story. And he wasn't really a man…I doubt he was human."

"Oui," Remy conceded. "But he was still a livin', breathin' creature. Technically it migh' not be de same, but your heart migh' not know dat. How are you feelin' about it?"

I shrugged, trying to force myself to relax. Remy wasn't here to accuse me of anything, he was just here to talk. "I don't know," I admitted. "I've never killed anything before. I guess it hasn't really sunk in yet."

"Why did you do it?"

I bit my lip in order to keep the tears at bay. "I thought he had killed you. You couldn't see yourself. You flew through the air like some…rag doll…through the air. And you never came back." My voice cracked terribly on the last sentence, and I sniffled in a failed attempt to stop crying. Suddenly I found myself in his arms, crying my eyes out while he whispered in my ear. I couldn't understand what he was saying—it was all in French—but the meaning was clear.

Eventually my tears stopped, but neither of us tried to break the embrace. We just stood in silence, enjoying each other's presence, thankful that we were both alive and well. Finally, Remy broke the silence.

"I meant what I said."

I frowned, trying to remember what exactly he was talking about. "Which part?"

"I love you." My heart skipped a beat and I gasped. I would never tire of hearing that from him. "Completely, an' unconditionally. Not'ing is ever gonna change dat."

I beamed and pulled away a bit so I could look at his face. "I love you too," I whispered and then kissed him soundly on the lips.

We were rudely pulled apart by the sudden lurch of the ship. Remy and I lost our balance and fell in a tangle of limbs to the ground.

"Ouch, chère. I t'ink you need to lay off o' de chocolate for a while. You weight a ton," he teased.

I rolled my eyes. "Very funny. It wasn't all fun and games landing on top of you either." I patted his stomach. "You're as hard as rock."

A wicked gleam came into his red eyes, and his hands trailed down to my hips. "Not yet. But I coul' be," he whispered seductively, grinding his hips against mine.

I could literally feel the blood rush to my face as I blushed horribly. Quickly I tried to scamper away from him while he just laughed. "You're awful!" I complained, beet red.

"You're jus' too easy."

I opened my mouth to retort, but suddenly the ship lurched and groaned again. Remy and I exchanged a glance, before racing to the top deck.

"You've got the wrong idea, Magneto," Logan said just as we reached the top. I had just enough time to see Kurt, Laura, and Logan surrounded by metal spikes, when suddenly some of them moved to point threateningly at Remy and I. We froze instantly, Remy with a deck of cards already at hand.

"We didn't take your daughter," I said, watching the floating purple and red figure warily. "We're just bringing her back."

"Where is she?" Magneto asked dangerously.

"I'm here." We all turned to look as Wanda walked towards her father, who floated down to give her a hug. "I want you to let them go."

"I will release them as once they're safely contained in cells," he said coldly.

"They didn't take me, father! They saved me! Isn't that worth their freedom?"

Ouch guilt trip. I watched the emotions play across his face, before suddenly the spikes fell to the ground. Remy and I slowly walked forward so we could join the others in facing Magneto.

"So this is your paradise," Logan sneered.

"Paradise has its price, Wolverine," Magneto snapped. "Come Wanda."

Wanda quickly said her good byes, complete with a kiss on the cheek for Kurt, before leaving with her father. We all watched quietly as the pair floated away towards the island, and suddenly we could hear a jet engine, and looked up to see the X-jet.

"Well, it's about time," I drawled.

"I don' suppose dey managed t' pick up somet'ing to eat?" Remy asked hopefully. "I'm starved! Almost dyin' takes a lot out o' you."

I grinned. "That's just an excuse, you're always hungry."

"Hungry for you," he teased.

"Gumbo, I'm warning you," Logan growled, releasing his claws threateningly.

"Quoi? Look at dis girl! Can you blame me?"

I smirked and headed towards the jet while Logan and Remy continued their banter. It was going to be a long ride home.

**French: **

Non – no

Je ne sais pas – I don't know

Chère – dear

Quel surprise – what a surprise

Petite – little one (in this case anyways)

Mon Dieu – my God

Homme – man

Au revoir – good-bye

Mon Coeur – my heart

Femmes – women

Merde – shit

C'est possible – it's possible

Mais – but

Oui – yes

Mon nez – my nose

Merci – thank you

Quoi – what

_Don't forget to review!!!_


	17. Badlands part 1

**Clearly some people had some issues with their computers last time, and that was why I received so few reviews. Yep. Uh huh. No, I'm not in denial. . Anyways, I'm going to give you guys another chance to remember why you want to review. Whether it is to offer suggestions to make it better, or just to gush/rant about how much you enjoyed/hated it.**

****NB: I'm trying a new way to do the translations. If you think it's better or worse, let me know! And if you don't know what "chère" means by now, there's no hope for you.**

**(Mwa ha ha ha, now you are forced to review!)**

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 17: Badlands Part I**

"Fang! You give that back _right now_!" I screeched, running after the hulking black menace, who I swear shot me a mocking look over his shoulder as he turned a corner. I snarled and stretched my legs to go even faster. This was so embarrassing. Why did I have to bring home a dog that thought it was fun to steal my underwear? "Fang, give it back! I mean it!"

He didn't listen, just kept running around the mansion, and dodging my hands with admirable dexterity whenever I came close to cornering him. The others didn't bother trying to get involved, just made it their personal mission to get out of the way before either of us bowled them over. What great friends I have, huh?

I was nearing the end of my patience when suddenly, the front door opened and Fang raced for the perceived freedom. My mouth opened in horror. I could just imagine the disaster if Fang got out into the grounds.

"Stop that dog!" I bellowed at the figure in the door, preparing to sacrifice my pride in order to get my bra back. But I shouldn't have bothered. Fang slowed to a stop by the figure's side and dropped his prize at the man's feet. My cheeks began to burn as the man picked up my bra and scratched Fang behind the ears. I hurried forward, trying to salvage what I could of my dignity. And as the figure straightened up at my approach, I felt ready to keel over and die.

"I gotta admit. I didn' t'ink you were one fo' pink lace, chère," Remy said with a small smirk, the bra in question dangling from one of his fingers.

"Shut up." Face beet red, I snatched it away from his grasp, smashed it up into a ball and stuffed it in my pocket. It wasn't fair for me to be so disorganized, and him to be so calm and collected all the time. Not to mention good looking. Today he was wearing his traditional brown trench coat and fingerless gloves, but underneath had a pair of worn blue jeans and a black T-shirt that clung attractively to his muscular chest and abs. I felt a bit like a ragamuffin with my unbrushed white and black hair, wrinkled red T-shirt and holey jeans.

He chuckled and pulled me into his arms for a hug. I tried to remain stiff and cold, but this was Remy. I couldn't stay mad at him for long. I sighed and leaned into him. Still highly embarrassed, but cooling down.

"So what are you doing here?" I asked, my voice muffled by his chest.

"Jus' wanted t' be wit' ma fille. Can' seem t' stand bein' away from you for too long." _[My girl]_

I smiled and pulled back a bit to look up at him. "Likewise," I murmured. Quickly I rolled up to my tiptoes and pressed my lips against his for a short, sweet kiss. "So do you have any plans?"

He shook his head. "Non. I don' care, as long as I'm wit' you." _[No]_

"Ok, why don't we—" I was interrupted why the chirpy ring tone of my cell. Frowning, I stepped back from Remy so I could reach it and at the same time pulled Remy to the living room so we could relax. "Hello?"

"Hey Taylor, it's Tiffany."

I grinned and flopped down on the couch next to Remy, quickly getting comfortable so I laying half on him and half on the rest of the couch. "Hey Tiff. What's up?" Remy interlaced our fingers and drew designs over my skin with his other hand, trying to distract me.

"Well, the guys and I were just hanging out and we realized it's been a long time since you've been over. So what do you say? Feel like coming out to hang with us normal, boring people?"

I laughed. "There's no way you lot are boring or normal. And yeah, I'd love to come, but I'm hanging out with Remy right now—"

"Oooh, that's the guy you went on that date with, right? The one we talked about in the skate park? Are you guys dating now?"

I smiled and snuggled into Remy's body. "Yeah."

She shrieked happily. "That's so cool! Bring him along; I'm dying to meet him. And the guys will have to do the whole hurt-her-and-we-kill-you speech."

"Is that really necessary?"

"Of course! It's tradition! Ryan, Jason, and Joel did it with Brett even though he's their best friend. Come to think of it, they gave the same speech to me…"

I smiled I rolled my eyes. They would. "Ok, well, let me talk to Remy."

"Okay."

Covering the mouthpiece of the phone with one hand, I craned my neck back to look up at Remy, whose fingers were now running through my hair. "Tiffany wants to know if we want to hang out with her and the gang."

He looked at me with some amusement. "Which gang?"

"Tiffany, Brett, Ryan, Joel, and Jason. They're my non-mutant friends I told you about at the music store a long while ago."

"Ah, oui. I remember. Do dey know dat you're a mutant now?" _[Yes]_

"Yeah, I told them the day of our first date. They accepted it."

"Bon. I'd love t' meet dem." _[Good]_

I grinned. "Sweet." I uncovered the phone and put it back against my ear. "It's a go."

Tiff whooped. "Awesome. Ok, meet us at the skate park in fifteen minutes. We'll bring a couple extra skateboards just in case."

"Ok. See you there."

"Bye."

I snapped my cell shut and—with some wriggling—managed to get it back in my pocket. "So, we're meeting them at the skate park in 15 minutes." I grinned evilly. "And since I know the way, I think it's only fair that I drive."

Remy opened his mouth to protest, then smirked. "Ok. Si tu veux." _[If you want]_

I looked at him warily, hesitant about his abrupt change in reaction, but let it slide. "Ok, I'm just going to grab a few things then we can go. Just stay here and behave yourself," I added sternly.

He gave me an innocent look of surprise. "Moi? I'm shocked you woul' even say such a t'ing!" _[Me]_

Shaking my head, I simply walked away with a smile. Quickly, I walked to my room to get myself organized, making sure the bra came out of my pocket first. I grabbed a baggy black sweater from the depths of my closet, my keys, wallet, double-checked I still had my cell, then raced to the computer lab.

I poked my head into all the rooms, looking for Logan or Hank. I wasn't exactly asking permission to go, but giving them the courtesy of knowing where I was going. I had responsibilities to the team, after all. I eventually found both of them in the war room huddled over some blueprints. Interesting…I wonder what they were planning. Oh well. They'd tell me when they were ready.

"Hey Logan, I'm going out to hang with Ryan and the gang. Remy's coming with me, and I have my cell," I rattled off quickly.

Logan gave me a look. "Fine. Don't be out too late."

I grinned. "I won't. See you later!" Quickly I retraced my steps up to the main floor, then took a couple short cuts to get to the living room. "Alright, we're set," I announced cheerfully. Remy jumped up and joined me as we walked out to his bike.

We donned the helmets and got ourselves settled on the bike—myself in the front of course. It didn't take me long to realize why Remy agreed so readily to a position in the back. He pressed his entire body up against my own, and ran hand hands seductively down my sides leaving trails of fire on my skin. I shivered with pleasure, and tried to ignore and heat of his body in favour of the road, but it was difficult. Stupid Cajun was going to get us both killed, but my competitive spirit refused to allow me to tell him to stop.

Finally we arrived safely at the park—no crashes, though there was a near miss—and we climbed off the bike. I pulled off my helmet and arched an eyebrow at the mischievous grin on Remy's face.

"You are incorrigible," I said primly as he settled his sunglasses over his red eyes.

He sauntered over to me, pulling us together and leaning down to speak in my ear. "Y' know y' love it," he breathed seductively. My breath hitched as his hot breath tickled my ear and I had to fight to keep my knees steady.

"Hey Taylor!"

Like a shock had gone through me, I leapt away from Remy to see who had called my name. Up on one of the ramps, stood four clustered together waving frantically. I grinned and waved back before they skated down the ramp, doing a few impromptu tricks on their way to greet us.

I grabbed Remy's hand and pulled him towards the cement. "Come on. Let's go." He sighed heavily, but firmly clasped my hand and walked with me towards the four approaching figures. "Hey guys," I greeted with a grin once they were close.

"Hey Taylor," Brett greeted me with a cheerful grin and we did the whole secret handshake thing. Involving lots of fist thumping, hand slapping and hand grasping.

"What's up man? Things still good with Tiff?"

His eyes lit up at the mention of his girlfriend. "Oh yeah. She's great."

"Awesome."

"You're alive!" Jason interrupted us with a lopsided smirk, pulling me away from Remy for a brief hug. I think it was meant to deliberately test Remy, but I could be mistaken.

"You getting sentimental on me Jason?" I asked gruffly, pulling away as fast as I can as my skin crawled under his touch.

He snorted, and tossed his blond bangs out of his blue eyes. "As if," he scoffed.

"Ignore the idiot," Joel advised, thumping fists with me then affectionately ruffling my hair. "We're all just glad to see you. Someone needs to cut Jason back down to size." Joel was by far, one of my favorite people in the world.

"Hey!" Jason protested. "I'm not that bad!"

"Sure you're not," Ryan drawled. He went so far as to give me such a ferocious hug I was lifted off my feet. "Good to see you."

"You too," I said a bit stiffly in his embrace. My skin was starting to burn from his touch—not in a pleasant fashion—so I quickly pulled away and stepped back to Remy's side. He seemed to understand my problem, because he didn't wrap his arms around me, he just clasped my hand and gave it a squeeze. My skin immediately quieted and I was able to relax. "Ok, guys, this is my boyfriend, Remy LeBeau. Remy, this is Ryan, Joel, Brett, and Jason." I pointed to each of the guys so that Remy wouldn't get confused if the guys tried to pull a fast one on him. Not that Remy wouldn't catch on right away—he was a master thief, trained for attention to detail after all—I was just saving us some trouble.

"Bonjour," _[Hello]_ Remy said amicably. The guys exchanged a glance.

"You French?" Jason asked.

"Non. Cajun, from N'awlins. De French Quarter." _[No]_

"And are you a…um…" Ryan waved his hand around and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. I understood his problem. He didn't want to say anything in case Remy wasn't a mutant, but really—way to be subtle.

"A mutant?" Remy asked with a sly grin. He put a hand to his glasses and pulled them down so his red on black eyes were easy to see. The guys' reactions were obvious as their eyes widened and they recoiled a bit. "Oui." _[Yes]_

"What are your powers?" Joel asked curiously as Remy pushed his glasses back in place.

"I convert de potential energy o' non-livin' matter inta kinetic energy." Seeing Jason's blank face he continued. "Essentially I make t'ings go boom."

"Cool," Brett said. "So have you ever skated before?"

"Non. But I'm sure I can pick it up." _[No]_

I knew that Remy would be able to do so, but the guys just exchanged amused glances. Suckers.

"Ok, well I'm going to find Tiffany. I'm sure she wants some girl talk." I wrinkled my nose at the thought. "You guys have fun. Play nice," I added sternly.

"Y' wound me, chère. When am I not a perfect gen'leman?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't know what I was thinking," I said sarcastically and then gave him a quick peck on the lips. "See ya." Quickly I walked away to the trees where Tiff and I had hung out before. Sure enough, in the shade of the largest one, lay Tiff. She was stretched out on a blanket with a picnic basket keeping down one corner, a skateboard on another and her sandals on the last two. Her red hair was fanned out beneath her as she covered her eyes with one arm and tapped her foot to the music on her iPod. No wonder she didn't hear us arrive. I smiled and nudged her with a foot, making her bolt up right and shriek with happiness when she saw me.

"Taylor! Oh my god, how long have you been here?"

I shrugged and settled down on the blanket next to her. "About five minutes or so. Talked to the guys already, Remy's with them."

"Really?" Eagerly she turned her gaze to the nearby ramps, easily spotting our boys. She whistled appreciatively as Remy took of his jacket and dropped it on the ground. "Wow, you sure have good taste. He's hot even at this distance!"

I chuckled. "Yeah, I know."

"Is he a mutant too? Does he work at your school?"

"He's a mutant, but he isn't one of the X-men. He's currently more of a…freelance agent." It probably wasn't a good idea to admit that he was a thief.

I could feel her eyes studying my face, but I refused to look at her. "You want him to be part of the X-men, don't you?" she asked quietly.

I shrugged and played with the grass next to the blanket. "Yeah. I think it would make things less complicated, and I'd like to share that part of my life with him, you know? But I don't think the others would accept him." I sighed unhappily. "Not yet anyways."

"Why not?"

I hesitated for moment. "You know that story I told you, about Remy stealing my diary?"

"Yeah."

"Well, the truth is a little more complicated." Quickly I divulged the tale and Tiff listened carefully. Not interrupting once to ask questions. Finally when I was finished, she sighed.

"You're right, that does sound like it would complicate things."

I grunted in response.

"Hey, don't give up," she said encouragingly. "If it's meant to be, it'll work out in the end."

My eyebrows shot up in surprise. "I didn't realize you were one for fate."

She grinned and shrugged. "Only when the occasion suits me. And today it does."

I rolled my eyes. "Not helping, Tiff."

With a heavy sigh, she shifted to get more comfortable. "I don't know what to say, Taylor. You're kind of in unusual circumstances. But I think what you really need to ask yourself is, is Remy worth the wait?"

Pursing my lips, I turned my gaze back to the ramps and smiled as I watched Remy doing some pretty impressive tricks. His enhanced dexterity and reflexes sure came in handy when it came to things like this. The guys were having a blast, whooping and hollering for Remy to do another, and attempting to show him up. My breath caught in my throat as Remy threw his head back and laughed. He was gorgeous, inside and out. I was lucky to have him. And yes, I do realize how cheesy those last couple lines sounded.

"Yeah," I said quietly. "Yeah, he is."

Tiffany beamed at me. "Good. Now, tell me. What have you been up to these last couple weeks?"

We spent the next two hours just chatting and catching up with each other and watching the boys with their skateboards. Occasionally they would come over to us to talk and get a drink of water. Every time Remy came over, he would find an excuse to touch me. Whether it was brushing fingers when I passed him a water bottle or tucking a stray hair behind my ear, my heart thumped loudly every time he did so. Finally, the boys seemed to have had enough sun.

"Come on ladies, let's go," Jason ordered nonchalantly as the boys approached us. I could practically see the others face palm as Tiff and I exchanged a glance.

"Excuse me?" I asked politely, hoping he'd take the hint. But this was Jason, he couldn't recognize hints if they slapped him in the face.

"Pack up," he reiterated. "We're going to Marcy's Diner."

"Really?" Tiff drawled.

"Yeah."

"What he means to say," Ryan broke in quickly in an attempt to mend the damage, "is that we would like to get out of the sun for a while—"

"And treat you beautiful ladies to some fine, authentic, 80's dining—" Brett added.

"Bu' only if y' belle femmes woul' deign t' spend your precious time wit' us," [_beautiful women]_ Remy finished.

I sighed dramatically. "I suppose I could consent to that."

"If we have a couple volunteers to pack up and carry our things." Tiff arched an eyebrow and immediately they all clambered to assure her that it would be dealt with. "Lovely," she drawled. "Come, Taylor. Let them work." Arm in arm, Tiff and I sauntered off in the direction of the diner. The boys quickly packed up and soon caught up to us.

"I still don't understand why _we_ had to pack up," Jason grumbled. "_They're_ the ones who sat by the stuff all day."

"An' dat's why you don' have a girlfriend," Remy said calmly, wrapping his arm around my waist.

"Just let it go, Jason," Joel sighed.

"Fine."

"So how far away is this diner?" I asked to break the awkward silence.

"Not far," Ryan answered. "Just a few blocks."

"It has really good food, everyone seems to go there," Brett added. "Teenagers, families, cops, businessmen, truckers, all types."

I nodded. "Must be good then."

"Believe me, you haven't eaten until you've eaten at Marcy's."

"I don't know, Remy's cooking is pretty good."

Remy laughed. "Aw, chère, you're makin' me blush."

"You cooked for Taylor? That's so cute," she gushed. Her attention then turned to her boyfriend. "Why don't you cook for me?"

Brett's eyes widened comically. "Um…"

"Probably because the one time he tried, he nearly burnt down the house," Jason said with a smirk.

"I did not!"

Tiff hummed thoughtfully. "It's ok Brett, at least you tried."

"I didn't almost burn down the house!"

I snickered. "Denial isn't healthy, Brett."

"Ok that's it!" He exclaimed. "You're dead!" He lunged at me, but I shrieked and dodged him just in time, ducking out from Remy's arm in the process. The guys laughed as Brett chased me down the street, but he never managed to catch me. Finally he gave up, and walked back to the gang who was entering a building. Apparently I ran right past the diner, oh well.

I wandered back towards the diner slowly, wary for a trap. But it never came. I reached the door that had "Marcy's Diner" elegantly inscribed on the glass, and pulled it open. The diner was tastefully and cheerfully decorated and had a happy atmosphere. I peered around at the booths until I found my friends near the back. I was about to walk over to them when I ran into someone coming out of a side room and I stumbled back a step.

"I'm so—" I started, but my apology died on my lips when I realized who I bumped into.

General Moss's face was about as ugly as I remembered it. Horribly scarred and turning purple as recognition dawned in his eyes.

"You," he growled as about twenty other MRDs gathered behind him. I chanced a quick glance over to my friends, and was relieved to see that they had noticed my predicament. At least now they would know what happened to me.

"Um…bye." With that witty rhetoric, I turned on my heel, and dashed out of the building, the entire squad of MRD soldiers on my heels.

"Halt mutant!"

Yeah, right.

I pushed myself to go faster, even though I had no idea where I was running. Nothing seemed like a good idea right now. I couldn't go back to the diner, I couldn't go back to the park (Remy had the keys), and the Institute was too far away. I was screwed.

Suddenly something tangled around my ankles, tripping me and I fell the ground hard. My chin knocked against the pavement and I bit my tongue, blood filling my mouth. I tried to push myself up, but suddenly I was completely tangled up in a net. The more I struggled, the tighter it became.

Expletives gushed out of my mouth nonstop, and I looked around wildly for a way out of this mess. The only thing I managed to see was Remy looking on with horror a couple blocks away with the rest of the crowd that was quickly forming. About ten MRDs were keeping the crowd at bay, and ten more were crowded around me, trying to take me in. Too many just for the two of us, especially in out positions. There was nothing either of us could do, and as we looking into each other's eyes, we acknowledged that grimly.

Then it all went black.

**A bit of a cliffhanger for you all, which is really awful, considering how long it's taken me to update. But fear not, I have a plan. Hopefully I'll be able to update again within the week. It helps that I'm getting a macbook so I'll have nothing better to do other than get acquainted with my new computer and write nonstop :D **

**Anywho, **_**REVIEW**_**! It inspires me, so if you want more review this chapter, dang it!**


	18. Badlands part 2

**Lovely reviews my ducklings. I'm very proud.**

**Mersang, this chapter's for you :D**

**Beware, there is violence.**

_I don't own __Wolverine and the X-men__ or any associated characters._

**Chapter 18: Badlands part 2**

Remy watched in horror as the MRDs dragged Taylor away. Her lifeless body hung limp in their arms and her glorious, black and white hair swirled in the breeze as if to say good bye. His teeth gritted together and his hands clenched at his sides.

He wouldn't let it.

Casually he sauntered closer to the MRD trucks, staying with the crowd in order not to attract attention to himself. Straining his ears, he managed to catch pieces of what the general was reporting in a radio.

"Escaped mutant…capture…holding cell…Stone…east headquarters…" That's all he needed.

Swiftly he backtracked to the diner where Taylor's friends—his too, he supposed—were waiting, ashen faced. He didn't say anything, just kept walking towards the park and they followed. They had gone about a block when finally their silence was broken.

"So…they have her?" Tiffany asked timidly, looking near tears.

"Oui," _[yes]_ he said shortly.

"So what are we going to do?" Joel asked evenly. His face and voice were calm, but Remy could sense the fear and anger roiling inside him.

"'_We_ aren' gonna do anyt'ing. _I'm_ gonna go and get 'er back."

His announcement was met with a cacophonous uproar. The boys were immediately protesting this plan of action and professing their capabilities. Tiffany was ranting about how they would do anything to get her back. All in all, it was a load of crap he didn't want, nor had the time to deal with.

Suddenly, he swung around to face the teenagers, his face a mask of intense anger, worry, and stress. "Dat's enough," he hissed. "Dis is _not_ a negotiation. You don' 'ave enough experience nor de proper knowledge t' deal wit' dis situation."

"Oh, and you do?" Jason retorted.

"I'm a professional t'ief," Remy said coldly. "Breakin' 'n enterin' is my specialty." He allowed a moment to let that sink in before continuing. "Dis ain't your problem, it's a mutant t'ing."

Silence reigned for a few tense moments, then there was a small voice.

"She's human, Remy. And so are we. Of course it's our problem. Besides, she our friend too."

Remy looked hard at Tiffany and despite her timid voice, she didn't back down. He could feel a headache forming between his eyes, but for the first time felt a ray of hope for the world. Maybe the X-men's dream wasn't so far fetched after all. If more people thought like these kids… Still, that didn't help the situation at hand.

He didn't have _time_ for this. _Taylor_ didn't have time for this. He needed to go and save her _now_. But her friends would never forgive him for going alone, and Taylor would never forgive him if her friends got hurt rescuing her. And if he were to admit it—not that he would—he could use a bit of help. The MRD were no joke.

Rock and a hard place.

"Vous êtes enfants," [_you're kids] _he whispered to himself in agony. "Vous avez aucune idée qu'est ce que on va bagarre. Qu'est ce que ces personnes peuvent faire. Ils sont dangereux. Ils ne sont pas peur a vous tuer. Ah, Taylor. Je suis désolé je n'avez pas te sauver." _[You have no idea what we're going to fight. What these people can do. They are dangerous. They aren't afraid to kill you. Ah, Taylor. I'm sorry I couldn't save you.]_ Privately he mourned the teenagers' innocence, ignorance, and naivety. He whispered apologies for what he was about to do. People today were far too eager to become jaded in some desperate attempt to become 'cool' and 'experienced'. As if it were a good thing. If only everyone were young and innocent.

"Fine," Remy said at last. "You can come, on one condition. You do 'xactly what I say, _when_ I say it. No stupid 'ero stunts. Dese people can and _will_ 'urt you given de chance. Comprends?" _[Understand?]_

They nodded seriously.

"Bon. _[Good]_ Now, dis is de plan."

My head hurt. So did my feet. And my hands. Come to think of it, it hurt to breathe too. Yeah, my whole body hurt. Well, at least I was alive…if only I could move as well. I tried to bring a hand up to my face, but something held me back. All of my limbs felt like they were strapped down. My heart thudded quickly in my chest and I felt my panic rising. Memories of my last capture flashed before my closed eyes. Moss' face, Stone's maniacal grin, the red-hot metal brand, the whip, and the knife.

I swallowed thickly, and took a deep breath. It hurt, but I managed to keep myself under control. When I felt like I wasn't about to completely fall apart, I slowly cracked an eyelid open, then the other.

I was surrounded by fancy technology. Literally. Some fancy scanner thing was encircling me, whirling cheerily and beeping every once in a while. I eyed it nervously then craned my neck to the side to see who was controlling it.

I couldn't see the man's face, but I still thought he looked rather familiar. He was rather tall—at least I thought he was, it was hard to tell since I was lying down—thin as a pole, and curly brown hair topped his head. He sported a white lab coat that covered him almost from head to toe, dark grey uniform pants peeking out at the bottom.

"Fascinating," the man murmured, then swung around to do something to his machines, but paused as he saw me. Only then did I recognize his awful Van Dyke beard and delicate glasses. Bolivar Trask. "Ah, so you're awake," he stated thoughtfully, rubbing his beard. "Interesting. Considering the dosage of gas you inhaled, I expected you to be unconscious for a few more hours."

"Well, I've never liked doing things as people expect me to," I quipped. "That's why I make such an awful prisoner, I'm too much trouble. So why don't you release me now and I'll pretend this never happened." I graced him with a winning smile and a small wink.

Yeah, I didn't think it would work either.

He chuckled and turned back to his machines. "Nice try, Miss Adams. But you'll be our guest for quite some time." His glasses gleamed ominously and I squirmed in fear. "There is much to be learned from you."

Creepy.

Suddenly the door at the other end of the room whooshed open and two MRD soldiers walked in. I was thankful for the interruption, but at the same time apprehensive. Their presence couldn't mean anything good for me.

"We're here to escort the prisoner to General Moss," one of them said stiffly.

Trask sighed, but nodded. "Very well. There are other affairs that need my immediate attention anyways." Without so much as a look at me, he pressed a few buttons on his machine and metal manacles released me to the hard hands of the guards and swept out of the room. The MRDs roughly pulled me to my feet and shoved me down the hall. Not once did their hands release me and by the strength of their grip I knew that I would have some pretty impressive bruises later.

We walked through the metal halls for quite some time. I figured we were almost on the other side of the complex when they abruptly turned and shoved me into a small room. I stumbled, catching myself of the table as the door hissed closed behind me. Automatically I turned back to the door, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't open it. My powers weren't working, and I tried not to let that scare me. I huffed loudly and half-heartedly kicked one of the two chairs in the room, and sat in the one facing away from the one-way mirror.

Me, uncooperative? No, surely not.

I sat there, waiting. And waiting. And waiting. I drummed my fingers on the table for a little bit, then sighed. What were the chances that they were trying to rile me up? And that there was someone behind that mirror?

Pretty good I figured.

With a small smirk I opened my mouth and started a loud, off-tune rendition of my favorite song. "99 beers on the wall, 99 bottles of beer! Take one down, pass it around, 98 bottles of beer on the wall!"

I couldn't have been on there that long—I only reached 82 bottles of beer—when suddenly the door to my right slid open. General Moss glared at me, no doubt expecting me to stop singing. He had a lot to learn.

"Take one down, pass it around. 81 bottles of beer on the wall! 81 bottles of beer on the wall, 81 bottles of b—"

The rest of the verse was broken off as Moss let one of his meaty fists fly, catching me in the face and knocking me to the ground. Ow. Behind my curtain of hair, I gently rubbed my fiercely aching jaw and used my tongue to check for any loose teeth. There weren't any, thank the lord, but my lip was split and I had bit my tongue. I spat out some blood, and slowly got my feet and faced Moss.

"You know, if you wanted me to stop singing, all you had to do was ask."

My words were rewarded with another punch to the face. This time, blinding pain lanced up my nose, and I heard a loud crack. I swore violently and stumbled away from him, clutching my now broken nose and blood gushed down my face, staining my shirt. I felt my stomach squirm nauseously and I swallowed thickly, trying to quell the sickness.

"I have some questions for you, mutant," Moss snarled. "And you're going to answer them."

I slowly looked up at him form my position by the opposite wall. I leaned against it heavily, trying to regain my strength and just looked at Moss. His face was turning red again, making his three scars stand out even more. The scowl on his face distorted them further, making him even uglier.

Then again, I probably shouldn't talk.

"You know, you shouldn't lie to yourself like that," I murmured thickly through my broken nose. "I'm not going to say anything."

He just smirked. "Oh yes, you will. Stone!"

I froze in terror as the man who haunted my nightmares sauntered into the room. His bald head gleamed sinisterly in the fluorescent light and he smirked at me as he nonchalantly placed a toolkit as well as a large basin of water on the table. I could feel my breathing speed up as sheer panic gripped me. My body trembled as I remembered the last time I spent time with this man. Phantom pains wracked my body as it remembered that past abuse placed on it.

"Hello Taylor," Stone purred. "Remember me?"

Without warning, he and Moss rushed me. Only at the last minute did it register on my mind and I moved to get away, but it was too late. Together, the pulled me towards the chair across from the one-way mirror and forced me into it. It was much higher up than the other one, and I struggled to get out of it, but I couldn't. Stone held me still as Moss used some sturdy rope to bind me to the chair by my wrists and legs. I pulled uselessly at my restraints, but it didn't do anything except make me start bleeding. I wasn't going anywhere.

"As I said before," Moss said smugly. "I've got some questions, and you're going to answer them. Stone will make sure of that, if you won't cooperate. So what's it going to be? Are you going to answer my questions?"

I just glared at him. My jaw would have been clenched in anger, but with my condition I had to settle for breathing evenly and deeply though my mouth. When I didn't respond, Moss simply gave a small nod to Stone and stepped back to let the man do his work.

My skin crawled as Stone approached. My body shuddered involuntarily, though I tried not to show my fear. Too bad my body betrayed me. Stone grinned, recognizing my weakness and taking great pleasure in it. He stepped closer to me, and ran a hand almost gently through my black and white hair.

I almost threw up.

"You have such pretty hair," he murmured. "So soft. So unique. Such a shame that it completely gives away your mutation. I would have thought that you would dye it so you can blend in better. You were rather easy to identify when you showed up with the X-men. Distinctive, but pretty." He tucked a strand behind my ear, then backed off as I shuddered and started digging around his toolbox.

"Sorry, did you want a wig? I'm afraid I won't donate my hair."

He continued as if he hadn't heard me. "The only reason I can imagine that you didn't try to cover it up, is that you really like your hair." He smirked as he caught sight of my withering look. "You do, don't you, Taylor? Most people are, particularly females. Women spend a lot of money on their hair, take good care of it, use it as a means of expression. It's amazing how something as simple and basic as hair becomes a part of one's identity." He paused dramatically and whipped out a cordless hair clipper, pressing the button to make it buzz ominously.

I paled. Stone was right, damnit. My hair was something I took pride it. My one vanity. I pretended not to, but I really did love my hair, when it came down to it. He was smart, but not original. Shaving off hair was a traditional torture—for lack of a better word—technique. I remembered a particularly moving scene from one of my favorite movies, _V for Vendetta_, where prisoners were shaved before being imprisoned. A simple, cheap method of dehumanization.

I closed my eyes as Stone grasped my hair and pressed the buzzer against my scalp. I felt a sort of weird, tugging sensation and cool air rushed in against my scalp and my heard started to feel lighter. Quietly, I submitted to Stone's ministrations, willing myself not to cry. It was just hair, not that big of a deal. It would grow back.

I didn't feel any better.

Eventually Stone turned off the buzzer and stepped back. He was done, and just as he wanted I felt off balance and violated. It didn't feel right. The familiar sensation of hair brushing my neck, ears, and back was gone. My head felt too light—it was truly amazing how heavy hair actually was—and cold.

"Are you ready to answer my questions now, Taylor?"

"Yeah." I kept my eyes closed, face drooped to the floor. I didn't want to see his expression of triumph. But I could still hear the smirk in his voice when he spoke

"Where's your hideout? Huh? Where's your main headquarters? Who's your leader?" I heard Moss approach as he grabbed my head and roughly pulled it back to look me in the eye. I didn't know if I was just in shock over losing my hair the or the blood loss, but I was feeling a bit loopy and I grinned wildly up at him.

"Hogwarts."

He blinked. "What?"

I laughed wildly, a note of hysteria in my voice. "Our headquarters are in Hogwarts. Our leader is Dumbledore!" I giggled madly. "Just call us the DA!"

There was a moment of silence, then Moss grabbed the back of my head and slammed it against the metal table. Tears leaked out my eyes and I whimpered pathetically as my head throbbed painfully. My ability to think was put on hold, I could barely process how much that one move hurt let alone what was happening around me. So it took me completely by surprise when my head was shoved into the bucket of water.

I choked on the water, fighting my instinct to breathe. I struggled wildly against the hand holding me down and against my restraints, but I couldn't do anything. I was completely helpless, drowning in a pool of one of my elements. How…pathetic.

Just when I thought I was going to pass out, the hand grasped the back of my shirt and pulled me up. My gasp of air was loud, and I swear to God that nothing ever felt so good as that first breath of fresh air. Then I started hacking and coughing up water, trying desperately to get my breathing under control. It didn't help my headache at all.

"We can go on like this forever, Taylor. All you need to do is give us information and we'll stop."

I shivered violently as the cold water trickled down my spike, dripping from my head and soaking my shirt. "You said to answer your questions, and I did. Not my fault you don't like my answers."

"No one likes a smart ass, Taylor," Stone warned me. "Especially us."

I cackled madly. "You wish you were as smart as my ass."

Back under I went. This time I was a bit more prepared so I caught a small amount of air in my lungs before being forced under. They retaliated by holding me under longer.

"Don't make this harder than it has to be," Moss warned as I caught my breath for the second time. "We're not unreasonable people. You give us something, we'll give you something."

"Give me, give me, never gets," I chanted hysterically. "Don't you know your manners yet?"

I was slapped across the face and punched in the kidney almost at the same time. It was an extremely painful combination. My jaw felt like it had been dislocated and I couldn't breathe for a moment. Finally, I recovered a bit and gasped for breath and worked my jaw.

"My God, you're touchy," I said breathlessly. "Is it that time of month again?"

Just for record, it really isn't a good idea to insult the masculinity of your captors.

Remy, Tiffany, Brett, Jason, Joel, and Ryan sat in Tiffany's mother's navy blue mini van three blocks from the MRD headquarters. Nervously, Tiff turned off the engine and turned to the rest of the boys, biting her lip. Remy hated seeing her in so much distress, but it was her choice.

"Ok. You two stay 'ere," Remy said, pointing to Tiff and Brett. "You're in charge o' de get away plan. No one shoul' come ou' to bodder you, but if dey do, give 'em an excuse."

"Like what?" Tiff asked.

Remy's eyebrows shot up. "You're two teenagers in love," he said with some amusement. "I'm sure you'll t'ink o' somet'ing."

Brett and Tiffany both blushed a spectacular shade of red, but nodded in agreement. It was a plausible excuse for two teens just sitting in a car. With a small roll of his eyes, Remy turned to face Ryan, Joel, and Jason.

"We are gonna go in an' get Taylor. Firs' t'ing we gotta do is get to de control room and find where dey put her. Jason and Ryan, you're gonna stay and guard de room, while Joel an' I go get her. On our way out we'll come an' get you. Are dere any questions?" They all shook their heads. "Den let's do dis."

"Wait!" Tiff exclaimed, twisting in her seat to see the boys. "Shouldn't we do some sort of team cheer or something?" She blushed furiously at Remy's incredulous face. "You know, for luck?"

"This is a rescue mission," Joel said dryly. "Not a football game."

She rolled her eyes. "Just humour me, please?"

Remy sighed and put out his fist. Sometimes it was just best to go with the flow. And maybe Tiff was right; maybe it would bring them luck. Quickly the others followed his lead and stacked their fists on top of his.

"For Taylor."

"For Taylor," the rest echoes, pumping their hands in the air. Then with a grim smile, Remy turned to the door and slid it open.

Silently, the four young men slipped from the van and crept towards the fence. Remy led them to a few small bushes and they crouched behind them as Remy scouted the MRD's defenses. They were fairly mediocre; a few cameras and some soldiers patrolling the perimeter. The night was fairly misty and would give them some visual cover, and the sound of the river would also mask some of the noise from their passage. Still, that didn't mean it was going to be easy.

"Follow me," Remy hissed to the others. Once he received their nods, he hurried towards the fence. He guided them around the areas watched by the cameras, and snuck past the few guards to an isolated corner of the fence. After checking that the coast was clear, he ran his fingers over one of the links, just giving it enough charge to disintegrate without attracting any attention. The expressions on the boys' faces were hilarious, but Remy didn't laugh. Now wasn't the time.

Remy urged the others through the fence, and ushered them into the shadows of the nearby guard post. He was about to move on when the sound of approaching footsteps caught his ear. Quickly the grabbed Jason—who was about to step out of their cover—by his shirt and hauled him back to safety.

Jason whirled around, mouth open to no doubt demand was Remy's problem was, but Remy had the reactions of a thief. He slapped a hand to Jason's mouth and listened.

"Hey Larry. Thanks for covering for me."

"You owe me Kevin," the second grunted. "I hope that lab tech was worth it."

"Every minute," was the satisfied reply. "She does this thing with her tongue—"

"I don't want to know. I've got a wife and we're perfectly happy together."

"Suit yourself. Anything to report?"

"Not a thing. It's as quiet as graveyard." There was the sound of a chair creaking and two pairs of footsteps scuffing around before the chair creaked again. "See you tomorrow Kevin."

"Have fun with the wife!"

Remy waited until Larry's footsteps died away then cautiously poked his head around the corner. Larry the guardsman was nowhere in sight, and the relief, Kevin, was reclining in a chair in the opposite guardhouse, feet propped up and eyes closed. Basking in the afterglow of really good sex no doubt. With a quick gesture to the others, Remy crept unchallenged towards the dreary, grey MRD headquarters.

It didn't take Remy long to figure out the best way to infiltrate the facilities. One of the garage doors was wide open—practically an invitation. The only problem was the handful of guards loitering just inside the door. They had two options, they could try and sneak past, or they could knock them out. Odds weren't in their favour for a fight, but the chances of sneaking past the guards was slim to none.

Fight it was.

"We need t' take out dose guards," he murmured. "Jason, you take de short one by de door. Joel, you get de red head. Ryan, you have de fat one eatin' doughnuts by de crates."

"What about the other three?" Ryan hissed. He could make out three bobbing helmets on the opposite side of the truck hood, innocently chatting away.

Remy smiled coldly, red eyes gleaming like cold fire. "Leave dem to me. Under no circumstances can you let dem t' sound de alarm. An' make sure your masks are on."

"I still don't see why you don't have a mask," Jason grumbled, adjusting his ski mask.

"Dey already know who I am. It don' matter if dey identify me. You, on de other 'and, 'ave yourselves an' _un famille_ to protect." _[a family]_ They couldn't argue with that. Jason just grunted and Remy rolled his eyes. "Ready? Go."

As one the four men leapt out of their hiding place and raced towards their targets. Remy had a brief chance to make sure the other could handle their targets since his were farther away. They seemed to be doing well. Joel's man was already on the ground, Remy noted, almost knocked out. He could help they others if need be. Satisfied with the safety of his charges, Remy turned his attention to his own targets.

They hadn't yet noticed that their friends were under attack. Stupid really, but Remy wasn't going to complain about anything that gave him an advantage. He had to take advantage of this soon, however. If he waited too long they would know and be ready for him. There wasn't time to go around the truck.

So he went over.

He leapt up, using the truck as a prop to propel himself over it. As he soared through the air, he whipped out his bo staff and extended it. For a brief moment, Remy felt like he was flying…them he brought his staff down hard on the head of the guard furthest away from the truck. With a sickening crunch the guard fell to the ground, maybe dead, but Remy couldn't bring himself to care. Rage made his blood boil and he turned to the other two guards, red eyes burning.

They didn't have enough time to react before Remy hit them with his staff. A quick jab to the stomach to distract one. A smack the other's hand that was creeping towards the radio. Blow to the first's head, knocking him out. Knock the second guard's gun out of his hands and complete maneuver with a strike to the head. The guard slowly slid the ground, a grand total of ten seconds since Remy and the others started their attack.

Remy turned his back on his victims and looked around to see how the others fared. The three guards were on the ground unconscious—Remy could see them breathing—and the three boys were staring at him in awe.

"Holy shit," Jason breathed.

Remy rolled his eyes. "We don' 'ave time for dis," he snapped. "Let's go."

He swung around to the smaller door on the other side of the garage, and marched briskly towards it. He heard the others run after him, but he didn't stop to wait. Confidently Remy stalked through the halls, following his mental map. He found that the MRD often kept the same general layout for all their buildings, and this was certainly not the first time that he had traversed through MRD halls.

Fifteen minutes and five unconscious—then hidden—guards later, Jason was making himself at home in the control room. He settled in the large, plush, leather rolling chair, scanning the vid feeds while Ryan examined some of the controls. Remy just shoved a radio in Jason's hands and gave com links to the others.

"You're our eyes," he told Jason sternly. "I need you to watch our route an' tell us if dere are any approachin' MRDs. Give us enough warnin' to get out o' de way. Ryan, you need to guard Jason's back."

"How are we supposed to know any of these feeds are connected?" Jason protested. "They're so confusing!"

"Suck it up princess," Joel scoffed. "Taylor's life is on the line."

Jason immediately wilted. "Right. Ok."

"If dere are no more useless complaints," Remy said pointedly. "We need t' move."

"So how do you know where Taylor is?" Ryan challenged. "Know this place that well, huh?"

Remy glared Ryan, hands clenching at his fists. "I'll deal wit' your accusations after Taylor is safe," he growled. "An' I don' know where Taylor is. I'm assumin', dat because she was taken prisoner, we can find her in de holdin' cells."

"She's not there," Jason suddenly whispered, a tinge of horror in his voice.

"An' how do _you_ know?" Remy demanded harshly. Jason just pointed wordlessly at one of the screens labeled _Interrogation Room 3_, and the others turned to look.

There she was. Dripping wet from being shoved head first into the bucket of water, but defiantly snarling and sneering at her captors. There was no mistaking her scars and purple eyes, but Remy found he could barely recognize her because there was something very important missing. Her hair was completely shaved off. Just gone. Remy never considered himself to be a superficial man, but he was stunned and horrified at the loss of something he admittedly really liked About Taylor. Her hair was unique just like her and he loved running his fingers through it. And he knew—even if Taylor had never admitted it—that she liked her hair as well and enjoyed it when he played with it. These days it seemed like her hair was the only thing Taylor liked about her appearance because of her scars, and now the MRDs took that away from her too.

Those bastards.

With a wordless snarl, Remy turned on his heel with Joel following right behind him. "Which way do I go?" he demanded into his com link, not slowing his pace in the slightest as he waited for the answer.

"Um…um…"

"Jason!"

"Left! Take you next left!"

Remy chose not to dwell on how uncertain Jason sounded, and simply took his directions. His heart pounded fiercely in his chest, urging him to go faster. But he knew it was foolish to compromise stealth for speed, especially when he hoped to take Taylor's captor's by surprise.

"Stop!"

Remy froze at Jason's shout, catching Joel by the shoulder to stop him from running around the corner. A couple of people wearing white lab coats walked by nonchalantly, sipping on mugs of coffee and not paying any attention to their surroundings. Remy was tempted to get deal with them in a more forceful manner, but refrained. He was too close to mess up by alerting security to their presence.

Patiently he waited until the doctors had disappeared and tapped on his earpiece. "Jason, where to now?"

"Um…go straight, then take the second right. The interrogation wing is at the end of that hall."

"Bon_ [Good]_, start radio silence."

"Hold on a sec, I think there's something you should know."

"What?" Remy growled, leading Joel further down the hall.

"We have some intruders."

"_Quoi? [What]_"

"I mean the MRD has more intruders…four more besides us."

"Who are they?" Joel asked.

"An' _where_ are dey?" Remy demanded. If they compromised his mission…

"Um, two girls, two guys. They're walking in the shadows so it's hard to identify them, but they're seem to be heading away from you. Towards the room where they're building some sort of robot."

"Tell me if you have de chance to see deir faces."

"Roger. Over and out."

Remy rolled his eyes, turned right at the second corridor and found exactly what he was looking for. Right above a secured doorway, a bland white and black sign proclaimed _Interrogation Rooms_, a small keypad just to the right of the door.

"How are we going to get in?" Joel asked quietly.

Remy didn't reply. He simply walked over to the keypad and charged it gently. There was a small fizzing and popping sound, and smoke wafted out from the cracks in the metal. For an awful moment, Remy thought that the door wouldn't open, but after a while it slowly slid open with an ominous hiss. Immediately, Remy could hear shouts coming from further down the hall. He shared a brief glance with Joel, before jogging silently towards the sounds.

When they reached interrogation room three, Remy stopped and positioned himself alongside the wall. Carefully, fighting the urge to burst into the room and kill every person who had laid a hand on his girlfriend, he peered through the tiny window. The ugly man who had taken Taylor captive—General Moss, he identified from some of his earlier jobs involving Dr. Sybil Zane—and a middle-aged, bald man he didn't know were in the room with Taylor, who was bound to the chair. Baldy had one meaty hand on the back of her closely shaven head, holding it under water in a large basin.

From the way Taylor's body was squirming, she had been under for a while and couldn't access her powers to give her some relief. But how? Did they manage to make a collar like the one the X-men had? Some sort of technology in the room? Would it affect his powers?

He decided it wasn't worth finding out the hard way.

"Ok. When I open de door, you get Scar Face—he's abou' two meters from de door, a bit to de left by de table—and I'll take down Baldy. Whoever is done firs' checks on Taylor and gets 'er free. Comprends?_ [Understand?]_"

Joel nodded once in confirmation and cracked his knuckles. "Got it."

Remy nodded grimly. They silently agreed that they were about to make their entrance as painful as possible for Taylor's captors. No mercy.

"Hey guys, I know who the other's are!"

Remy snarled at the interruption. "Who?"

"It's the X-men. At least some of them. Logan, Kitty, and Forge and some girl with black hair. As far as I can tell they're spying on the MRD or something."

Remy considered this for a second. "Bon. _[Good]_ We'll meet wit' dem on our way out. Now shut up. We're abou' to rescue Taylor."

"Roger. Over and out."

Remy rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the task at hand. "Un…deux…trios…Go!"

Remy opened the door and the two men sprung into action. Joel immediately rushed the General, managing to get in a solid punch to the face before the General even realized they were under attack. Remy flew across the room, jumping over the table and landing feet first on Baldy's face. His head slammed against the floor and blood started to seep out form beneath him, but somehow remained conscious. Remy sneered at the whimpering man, before kicking savagely where no man ought to be kicked, then once more to the head to knock him out. As far as Remy was concerned, he was being too nice, but he had more important things to do.

It was then that he realized two things.

One, Joel was still fighting General Moss and was having some difficulties. It was only to be expected. The General—whatever his faults—was no lightweight and had years of hard military training under his belt, whereas Joel was a teenage street fighter, albeit an extremely pissed off one.

Two, Taylor's head was still in the water and she wasn't moving.

Remy didn't hesitate in deciding who to help.

He dove to Taylor's side, quickly charging the rope and freeing her from the chair. Gently he laid her on the ground, fingers flying frantically around her still face, trying to determine if she was breathing.

She wasn't.

"Mon Dieu, aide-moi! _[My God, help me]_"

He was panicking. His breath caught in his throat and his body wouldn't stop trembling. Remy could feel his heart pounding so hard he feared it would jump out his throat and his stomach felt like it was full of lead. Still, somehow he managed to remember what he had to do.

Her lips were cold against his when he bent down to breathe into her. Cold and unresponsive. He moved back, placed his hands between her breasts and pumped for all he was worth.

Repeat.

Again.

Again.

"Non. Non,non,non,non,non,non,non…_[No]_" he murmured to himself. "C'mon Taylor. Breathe, damn it!"

Again.

Again.

Again.

He could feel himself getting colder as Taylor remained unresponsive beneath his hands. He was completely blind to his surroundings. Nothing else mattered except the girl lying prone on the floor. He couldn't hear Joel's fight, Baldy's ragged breathing, Jason's shouts in his ear. He was blind and deaf to the world around him. All he knew was that it was completely over, there was nothing else he could do. Taylor was gone.

Remy screamed, agony ripping through him. He couldn't feel the tears pouring down his face; all he knew was that his life was over. And every fucking MRD in the building—maybe in the world—was going to die.

Just like Taylor.

Just like him.

He slammed his fist into Taylor's chest one last time, and was about to turn away, when suddenly Taylor's eyes popped open and she turned to her side, coughing up water out of her lungs, weeping and dragging in huge lungs full of air.

Remy could only stare in shock for a moment. She was alive. Taylor was ok. She was breathing.

Taylor was alive.

A word to the wise. Drowning in of itself is a fairly peaceful way to kick the bucket. I could do without the moron holding my head in water, but all in all it wasn't a bad way to go, after you let go of the panic.

Waking up after downing, however, was another thing entirely.

My throat and broken nose burned. I choked on the water, spit and vomit that was coming out of my mouth and nose, and I could hardly draw a breath _in_ for everything that was coming _out_.

Not to mention it was pretty freaking cold, and my body wouldn't stop trembling.

I had hardly finished coughing up my lung when suddenly something warm and large latched onto me. I though immediately of Stone, and my instincts kicked in—not to mention my PTSD. I screamed and shoved hard at the form clutching me. My movements were apparently unexpected and the man let go of me and landed on his butt while I scrambled away from him. My body was trembling, and I could hear myself crying hysterically, but I couldn't seem to control myself. It was like I was having an out of body experience. I wanted to sit down and shut up and actually take a look at my surroundings, but I didn't seem to have control of my body any more.

I wanted to be home. I wanted to be warm and dry. I wanted to be in control. I wanted to be safe.

I wanted Remy.

"Taylor! Shh, ma chère, you're alright."

Oh God. Now I was hearing things. My mind has finally cracked. It was doing the only thing it could think of to calm me down, manufacturing the sound of Remy's voice. A clever tactic—and a perfect likeness, if I do say so myself—but I knew better. There was no way that Remy could be there.

"You're safe. Je suis ici._ [I'm here]_ Chère, listen to me! C'est moi! _[It's me]_ It's Remy, Taylor. I'm here. You're safe."

I felt warm, calloused hand gently touch my should, my nearly bald head. I thought I felt it trembling slightly against my skin, but then again it could just be me. A warm, spicy, musky scent reached my nose. Remy's scent. Surely my mind couldn't recreate that so perfectly.

Slowly I opened my sore eyes and looked up. Remy's beautiful red on black eyes looked at me with concern, barely concealed panic, relief, and love. Don't ask me how I identified all those emotions, because I couldn't tell you. I just knew. I could see faint tear tracks down his cheeks and I knew that just moments before he had been crying, but I didn't know why.

"Remy?" I whispered hoarsely. That was all we needed.

I broke into fresh tears and lunged at him, wrapping my arms around his neck and burying my face in the crook of his neck. His arms were strong and tight against me, crushing me against his chest. His warmth soaked into me, and for the first time in what seemed like ages, I felt safe.

I was home.

**There you go, my dears. Sorry about how long it took to post. For some reason this chapter was really hard to write. Like pulling a tooth! **

**Any who, review please!**


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